Adventure Time: Year of the Pig
by Wasmowin93
Summary: The Land of Ooo has been peaceful. The Heroes and princesses have grown content in this brief time of peace. But now, something ancient has awoken, something evil, something with a plan. Now our heroes will become the pieces of a painful puzzle. Pawns in a cruel game of survival. Will they have what it takes to survive? Or will they fall as so many have fallen before them?
1. Chapter 1: The First Piece

Chapter 1

The sun once again rose over the land of Ooo, just as it had for countless centuries. With the Lich finally defeated and all other threats dealt with, the land of Ooo had entered an era of peace. The Candy Kingdom thrived harmoniously with the neighboring kingdoms.

The people of Ooo felt safer than they ever had. Crime was at an all time low. Local economies were growing and thriving. One could buy anything they needed for the right price. Food, medicine, shelter, even protection.

Even with all of Ooo's major threats dealt with, one could still purchase the help of Ooo's local champion; Finn the Human.

With skills such as his, money was never a problem. But Finn never saw adventuring as a means to and end. He would not ask for money or a reward for his troubles. Any rewards he collected were from the spoils of his adventures. But money was never a motivation for him, nor the songs of praise those he helped sang for him. For Finn, the adventure was its own reward. He and his bother Jake would spend days at a time going on different adventures.

Whether it was slaying trolls or crawling through ancient dungeons, the two of them would give it their all, just as they always had. Life was simple and happy for the young adventurer and for the land of Ooo.

Or was it?

* * *

Jake had noticed for the last few months that his brother had been growing slowly more and more apathetic. At first, he thought nothing of it, he figured it was just a random funk that Finn would eventually shake off. But as time went on, Finn's condition did not improve. He didn't seem to be getting worse per se, but Finn certainly was not getting better.

His adventuring had slowed to a crawl, and even during their adventures, Finn seemed to lack the joy that it once gave him.

All in all, Finn seemed very tired of everything in general. What was worse for Jake was that he had absolutely no idea how this depression fell upon his brother or how to drag him out of it. Jake had done everything he could think of to pull Finn out of his sad little cloud, but nothing seemed to be helping.

Jake stood at the edge of the latter that lead to their treefort's entrance. It was getting dark out, and Jake could see the moon slowly rising on the horizon.

Lady Rainicorn was having a small issue involving a goblin that had fortified itself in her attic.

"You're sure you don't wanna come with me?" Jake asked his brother, who was currently lazing on the couch. "It might be fun."

"Naw, it's cool. Go on without me." Finn answered in an uninterested tone.

"You're sure, you're sure?" Jake asked, hoping to elicit some better response from his brother.

"Yep, I'm sure." Finn answered, just as monotoned an uninterested as he had before.

"Kay then. Bye then. I'll be going now." The dog said in a disappointed tone. "See you tomorrow then…"

"Later Jake." Finn responded, not even taking his gaze away from the ceiling of the living room.

* * *

With his brother gone, Finn was free to indulge himself in whatever he could find to pass the time.

Tonight, he was content with simply lazing in the living room in silence. He knew that his brother could handle whatever it was that needed to be handled. Finn simply didn't want to be bothered. He knew that this disinterest he was feeling wasn't good for him, but he simply couldn't bring himself to care. As Ooo had grown peaceful, the amount of adventures he had gone on had not dwindled even in the slightest. But none of them gave him that big rush that he once felt any longer.

With out the Lich, without a villain, Ooo was finally safe. No other quest could out do the vanquishing of the Lich in terms of importance. Everything else now seemed so small and insignificant. He longed for the rush had once felt, the thrill, the danger, more importantly, he wanted to feel needed again.

No more, big world ending danger meant no more need for a hero. With no need for a hero, Finn felt that there was no need for him anymore. He had tried his best to shake away such dark thoughts, but they always managed to creep back into his brain.

Having grown bored of simply wallowing in his self-pity, Finn decided that a nice cold soda would brighten his mood. Or, at least he hoped it would.

With a tired sigh, Finn pushed himself off of the couch and slowly made his way into the kitchen.

The moon was high in the night sky, and its pale light filled the tree fort thoroughly. Finn squinted his eyes as the brighter light from the refrigerator cut through the dimly light kitchen.

Finn reached into the far back of the fridge and grabbed a soda. He took a moment to caress his neck with the chilled soda can. He sighed tiredly as a chill ran up his back. With a snap, Finn cracked open the can and quickly began to drink. Not even the tingling sensation of the cold carbonated soft drink could brighten his mood.

* * *

Just as Finn shut the fridge door, he heard a sound. It was a subtle sound, almost too quiet to be heard. It sounded like one of the floorboards squeaking in the living room.

"That you, Jake?!" Finn hollered as he peered from the kitchen.

His call was met with absolute silence.

"BMO? You okay?!" Finn hollered.

Again, Finn was met with silence.

 _Something weird is going on._ Finn thought as he entered the living room. Everything seemed to be even quieter now than it had only moments ago.

Finn carefully crept into the living room with his head on a swivel. The air grew tense as Finn's eyes slowly scanned the room. Nothing was out of place, nothing was missing, and nothing was broken. He hadn't felt this creeped out since Ice King had used the horse disguise on him and Jake. Those were simpler times, but Finn had no time to reminisce on them.

 _Something is wrong._ Finn thought as he placed his soda on the coffee table.

As Finn leaned over the coffee table, he noticed something that he hadn't before.  
Setting almost perfectly hidden under the coffee table was a small box with the words 'For Finn,' written in red paint on the lid.

Without much though, Finn quickly picked up the box and looked over it. He sniffed it and gagged. The box reeked of oil and harsh chemicals.

With his interest at an all time high, Finn placed the box down on the coffee table and gently opened the lid.

Resting inside the painted box was pre-mushroom war technological relic. A tape recorder. Written on the tape recorder were the words 'Play Me,' written in red on a white label.

Finn's eyes were quickly drawn away from the tape recorder as they fell upon four photographs secured with a paperclip. Finn gently picked up the photos and brought them closer to his face.

The first photo was of Princess Bubblegum hard at work in her lab.

The second photo was of Marceline carelessly strumming on her bass guitar in her living room.

The last photo was of Flame Princess, sleeping soundly in her bed in the depths of the Fire Kingdom.

All of the photos seemed to be taken by someone hidden but very close to his friends. Each of the photos were labeled.

'Player Two' was written under PB's photo. 'Player Three' was written under Marceline's photo. Finally, 'Player Four' was written under Phoebe's photo.

"What the Glob?!" Finn exclaimed as looked closer at the photos.

Finn's mind suddenly snapped back to the tape recorder. Fuming with anger, Finn picked it up and held it to his ear. With an audible click, the tape began to play. Through the faint crackling of static, a distorted, toneless voice spoke.

 ** _"Hello, Finn the Human. You don't know me, but I know you. If you are playing this tape, then that means I have found you wanting."_**

The voice on the tape filled Finn's blood with ice. The voice, while calm, hid a great evil beneath its monotone and crackling static. Finn had not felt such a sense of dread from a mere voice since the Lich first spoke to him. Whoever was speaking to him was as evil as the Lich himself. Such a thought boggled Finn's mind.

 _Who could be as evil as the Lich?_ Finn thought briefly as the tape continued.

 **" _By the time this tape finishes playing, your friends will already be in my possession. You will be joining them shortly. Do not resist, for you, Finn, are the last player that I require"_**

Finn felt a sudden pinch on his neck followed by a quickly spreading numbness in his neck. Finn spun around and was greeted by a figure in a pig mask hidden under a black and red robe. Clutched tightly in the intruder's grasp was an empty syringe.

"Why you…when I get my hands on…" Finn tried to speak but quickly found that his mouth no longer wished to move.

He stepped forward, but his legs crumbled beneath him as the numbness spread throughout his body.

With a dull thud, Finn's head hit the floor. With darkness quickly creeping into his vision, the last thing Finn heard was the voice on the tape recorder.

 ** _"I want to play a game."_**

* * *

 **I have returned. Oh, how I have missed you all.**


	2. Chapter 2: The Second Piece

Chapter 2

* * *

Night had fallen over the Candy Kingdom. Its brightly colored buildings were awash in the moon's pale light. The citizens of the kingdom were all fast asleep, safe in their homes. With the exception of the select few that chose to stay awake into the long hours of he night. The massive Gumball guardians stood undaunted by the need for sleep. The ever-loyal Banana guards tried their best to patrol the streets, but many would simply fall asleep where they stood. It mattered little. So long as the Gumball guardians maintained their silent vigil, the kingdom and the princess would be safe.

* * *

Princess Bubblegum yawned and wiped the sleep from her eyes as she observed a small enclosure that sat on her work desk. The test subjects had evolved rather quickly over the last few days she had observed them. They were simple candy constructs, lacking most of the intelligence that the other candy people possessed. But they were still worth studying. Princess Bubblegum watched silently as one of the older subjects tended to what she had determined were fields for agriculture. The tiny farmer stopped and waved at her, making a happy squeaking sound as he did.

 _Interesting, they have become aware of my presence._ Princess Bubblegum thought as she jotted down the new information in her journal.

She then gently prodded the tiny candy farmer with the end of her pencil. It squeaked happily again, even after she left it with a sizable hole in its stomach.  
PB turned and wrote more in her journal. She then reached for a pair of scissors. Without hesitating, she quickly snipped the tiny farmer's legs out from under him.

The candy farmer squeaked again, except this time, the squeak was of great dismay. The other candy subjects quickly gathered around their wounded brethren, all squeaking in panic.

 _Fascinating. They react better to negative stimulus._ PB thought as she updated her findings again.

When she looked back towards the test subjects, she found that they had all already retreated into their shelters.

"That's all right, I'll see you all tomorrow." PB said sweetly as she placed the lid back over the enclosure.

Princess Bubblegum yawned as she stood up from her desk. She had stayed up far later than she had intended.  
But science waited for no one. At least that is what she wanted to believe. In the months that followed the Lich's final defeat, her kingdom had prospered and grown. She had every right to be content with the way things had become, yet she still felt…incomplete.  
Yes, her kingdom was thriving. Yes, the land of Ooo was safe once more.  
But she couldn't help but feel an emptiness slowly growing inside of her.

"When was the last time that I saw Finn?" she said to herself with a sad sigh. "When was the last time I got to have fun?"

The more she thought about it, the more she realized that she hadn't seen many of her old friends for almost a month. She hadn't seen Finn or Jake.  
Lady Rainicorn was always busy with her family. And Marceline was, well, still Marceline. The two of them hadn't seen each other for a good while now.  
All in all, Princess Bubblegum missed her friends.

"Its lonely at the top." She muttered to herself as she slipped into her pajamas.

* * *

Just as she had pulled her blankets over herself, there was a sudden knocking on her bedroom door.

"Who is it?" she asked, slightly irritated.

"It is me, Princess." Peppermint butler's familiar voice responded.

"What is it, Pepper?" PB asked with a tired yawn.

"Princess…I think you should come see this…"

"See what?" PB asked, growing more irritated. She was exhausted and wanted to go to sleep.

Her question was met with silence.

"See what?" PB asked again as she pulled her blankets off of her.

Again, she received no answer.

"Cram it." PB cursed under her breath as she hastily walked to the door.

As she flung open the door, Princess Bubblegum was greeted by an empty hallway. Peppermint Butler was nowhere to be seen.  
Her eyes quickly scanned the hallway.

"Hello? Pepper, where did you go?" she hollered.

The hallway was completely empty with only one exception.  
Setting on the floor in front of her bedroom door was a small box with the words "For Player Two," written on the lid.

"Creepy." PB shuttered as she opened the box.

Her blood ran cold as her eyes fell upon the contents of the small box.  
Inside the box were several photographs of herself, Finn, Marceline, and Flame Princess.  
Her hands shook as she looked over her photograph.  
The only way anyone could take a photo like the one she was holding was if they had taken it from inside her closet.  
Written on the back of her photo was a message.

 _"Do not resist."_

* * *

Princess Bubblegum heard a loud hiss and felt a sharp pain in her back, followed by an intense burning sensation.  
With a startled cry, PB swung around and socked her assailant firmly in the chest. Or at least it felt firmly to her.  
The intruder towered over her at a staggering seven feet. They dawned a rotting pig mask and a red and black robe over their massive figure.  
In the intruder's hand was a jet injector with an empty vial.

"Intruder!" she screamed as loudly as she could. "Banana Guards! Gumball Guardians!"

Or that's what she would have screamed, if she could. As it were, Princess Bubblegum found that she couldn't move any part of her body.  
Whatever she had been injected with was quickly hardening her usual malleable body.  
With a dull thud, Princess Bubblegum fell to the floor, stiff as a board.

The masked intruder snorted and withdrew a black body bag from under Princess Bubblegum's bed.  
Her heart pounded hard in her chest as she watched the assailant drop the bag next to her.

 _How did they get past the Gumball guardians?_ She thought frantically as the intruder unzipped the body bag.

Her eyes darted madly in every direction, looking for a way out, a clue, anything! The intruder easily lifted her off of the floor and slid her into the bag.

 _Finn, someone…anyone…help me!_ The screamed to herself as the bag was slowly zipped closed.

* * *

No light could be seen inside the pitch-black body bag. Tears quickly fell down Princess Bubblegum's cheeks as she felt the intruder hoist her over their shoulder.  
Then she heard a click, followed by a subtle static.

 _ **"Hello, Princess Bubblegum. You don't know me. But I know you. If you are playing this tape, then I have found you wanting."**_

The ground shook as something massive moved on the horizon. Something ancient and evil.

 _ **"By the time this tape finishes playing, your friends will already be in my possession. Do not struggle, for you will be joining them soon. I want to play a game."**_

 _My friends? Oh, Glob, no! Please, don't hurt them!_ PB pleaded silently. _I'll play your game, just don't hurt my friends!_

As if to answer her silent screams, the voice on the tape continued.

 _ **"You can't save them, not until you have learned what must be learned."**_

Princess Bubblegum fought against the chemicals in her body as much as she could, but even in this great peril, she could only force out tiny squeaks from her mouth. Such sounds would never be hear as the masked assailant vanished into the night, with Princess Bubblegum in their possession.

 _Finn…please help me…_

* * *

 **Yes...there will be blood...**


	3. Chapter 3: The Third Piece

Chapter 3

* * *

The moon was high in the night sky, and stars were shimmering brightly. High above the grass lands of Ooo, Marceline the Vampire Queen let out a content sigh as she bathed herself in the moon's light. After a long day of being cooped up away from the sun, Marceline greatly enjoyed the freedom that night blessed her with.  
She ran her fingers through her long black hair as the wind gently blew against her.

"Mmmm…that's nice." She sighed happily as the cool night air sent pleasant shivers down her spine.

No matter how many times she had seen the moon over the eons, it never failed to make her feel alive.  
Her fingers gracefully traced over her bass guitar with anticipation. She had been trying to work on a new song, but she had been having trouble coming up with anything. She couldn't think of any lyrics yet, so she hoped that maybe she could flesh out the tune that night.

As she readied her guitar, she noticed that a large flock of birds were flying out of the tree line of the neighboring forest.

"Something must have spooked them." She said dismissively. "Not my problem."

After taking a moment to prep herself, Marceline began to strum the chords of her bass. She stopped and quickly retuned her instrument.

"That's not right." She muttered as she steadily twisted the tuning pegs.

Once she was finished retuning her guitar, she quickly went back to strumming a soft melody. She still couldn't think of any lyrics, but at least she had a tune to follow.

 _I wonder what Princess Bubblegum is up to tonight?_ Marceline thought as she continued to play her melody. _Or that goofball Finn. Haven't seen him in a while._

Marceline had noticed that Finn had been looking a little down for a good while. Marceline hadn't seen Finn so bummed out since his breakup with Flame Princess.  
She knew that he had taken it hard, but he seemed to have since gotten over it. He just needed time to heal.  
Despite that, Finn seemed to be back in the gloomy cloud that he had lost himself in once again.  
She had tried her best to get him to brighten up, but nothing had worked. But Marceline was persistent, she knew that she would get him to cheer up eventually.  
It was only a matter of time, something which she had plenty of.

 _Finn just needs time to sort his brain and feels out. That's all._ Marceline thought with a sad smile.

As for Princess Bubblegum, she had been so busy with managing her kingdom, that she hardly had time for anyone now.  
This stung more than she wished it did as the two of them had become very close friends.  
Marceline hated to admit it, but the land of Ooo was slowly feeling more lonesome.  
However; she knew that this rough period was just another bump on the long road of life. Eventually, things would go back to normal.  
They always did. It was all just a matter of time.

 _And I have plenty of time._ Marceline thought coolly as she continued to strum thoughtlessly.

* * *

Marceline's ears twitched as she heard a low rumbling far off in the distance.

 _Thunder?_ She thought as she stopped playing her melody. _But there isn't a cloud in sight._

The rumbling persisted for a few moments before everything grew silent once more.

 _That was weird…whatever._ Marceline shrugged her shoulders. _No skin of my nose._

The wind shifted slightly, and with it, came a terrible, acrid smell. Marceline hissed in disgust as she covered her nose.

"Glob, what is that stink?!" she spat bitterly.

She knew this smell, all vampires and those that hunted them knew it. It was the smell of garlic.

"Who uses that much garlic to cook?" she gagged as the stench wormed its way into her nose.

Marceline hid her nose under her shirt, as she tried to find the source of the stench.

With teary, yet still keen eyes, Marceline noticed that the tree line was abuzz with activity.  
Dozens, maybe hundreds of tiny woodland animals were running out of the forest.  
Most likely trying to get away from the vile smell that had fallen upon their slumbering heads.

"Good idea!" Marceline hissed as she dove for the ground. "Time to bounce!"

The air lower to the ground was easier on her senses, but not by much. In fact, the air seemed to be growing thicker with the pungent smell.

"What's with this friggin' smell?!" Marceline gagged as she flew as fast as she could.  
The moon light that once bathed the land in light suddenly grew dim as a thick black cloud rolled over the night sky.  
Again, Marceline could hear the dull rumbling. This time it sounded closer.

* * *

A rush of relief flooded through her as the familiar opening of her cavernous home quickly came into view.  
With a burst of incredible speed, Marceline bolted into the subterranean refuge.  
The gentle glow of the subterranean fungus that covered the cavern ceiling gave Marceline all the light that she needed. Not that she needed any light.  
She could see perfectly in pitch-blackness should she ever need to.  
Without skipping a beat, she quickly flew to her house and flung open the door before slamming it behind her.

"Made it!" she exclaimed happily as she let out a held breath. "That was too crazy…"

Marceline sniffed herself and hissed in disgust. The strong stink of garlic had stuck to her clothing and body.

"So yuck!" she hissed as she pulled her shirt off and threw it across the living room. "I sooo need a shower…"

* * *

After stripping out of her garlic smelling clothing, Marceline quickly hopped in the shower and scrubbed the smell off.  
After a quick shower, she slipped into a fresh change of clothes. Shorts, and a loose-fitting t-shirt. Her hair was still damp, but she didn't mind it.  
With her evening of outside fun ruined, Marceline lazily floated into her living room.  
She picked up her guitar and started to strum absentmindedly before remembering the melody she had made up earlier.

 _All I need are lyrics, and I'm golden._ She thought happily as she floated over her couch.

Her mind was abruptly pulled from her music as a new scent wafted into her nose.

 _What now?_ She thought with a scowl as she looked around the room. The smell was subtle, but she would find its source. Nothing escaped her nose.  
After following her nose around the house, Marceline finally found the source of the strange smell.  
Setting tucked under her television was a small box with the words "For Player Three," written on the lid.

 _What is this?_ Marceline thought as she looked over the box. _Is this some kind of prank?_

She held the box gently up to her nose and sniffed it. She could smell rust, oil, coal, and blood.

 _Blood…why do you smell like blood, box?_ She asked as she lifted up its lid.

Inside the box was a small tape recorder with the words "Play Me," written on the label. She picked it up and debated on whether or not she should play it.  
Next to the recorder sat a pile of photographs. Still holding the recorder, Marceline quickly flipped through the photos.  
The photos were of herself, Finn, Princess Bubblegum, and Flame Princess.  
An intense anger surged through her veins as she studied the photos of herself.  
Several of them had been taken while she had been showering earlier that night.  
Someone was in her house!

"Alright, I know your in here! Show yourself and I'll go easy on you!" She practically roared as she raised her bass, brandishing its axe blade edge. With her fangs bared menacingly, Marceline took the tape recorder and began to crush it in her hand. With a crackle, the tape recorder began to play.

 _ **"That was unwise."**_

With a white flash and a loud bang, the tape recorder suddenly exploded in Marceline's hand. She screamed in pain as her skin smoked and burned.  
Dropping her bass and falling to her knees, she clung to her burning hand as she tired to muscle through the shock and pain.

"S-s-silver nitrate?!" She stammered as her hand shook in pain.

With an angry hiss, Marceline rose to her feet and wiped the silver powder off as best as she could.

"You will have to do better than that!" she roared in challenge.

The sound of shattering glass alerted Marceline to a small metal canister that had been thrown into her house.

"Oh, cram it!"

With a loud hiss, the canister erupted into a wall off thick purple smoke. The smoke stung Marceline's eyes and felt like broken glass to her skin.

 _Vervain! I need to bale, now!_

As a former vampire hunter, Marceline knew exactly what the goal here was. Whoever or whatever was attacking her were trying to smoke her out and get her out into the open. And though she hated to admit it, their plan was working.

Through the smoke, Marceline could see three figures. Each of the robed figures wore a pig mask.

"Heads up, little piggies!" She roared as she charged them.

With the force of a semi-truck, Marceline tackled the largest of the three attackers and sent him flying across the kitchen and through the wall.  
Now outside the smoke-filled house, Marceline could finally fight her attackers unhindered.

With a terrifying snarl, Marceline sank her fangs deep into the attacker's neck. But rather than warm blood, she was greeted with a mouthful of grey liquid.  
Undaunted by what should have been a fatal wound, her attacker grabbed her by the hair and yanked her off of his neck.

Quickly spitting the bitter tasting liquid from her mouth, Marceline reared back up and pounced again. This time, her attacker was ready for her.  
From within the sleeve of its robe, the attacker sprayed a stream of clear liquid at the attacking vampire queen.  
The moment the liquid touched her skin, it began to burn like white out coals. Losing her momentum, Marceline stumbled and rolled to the ground.

Scolded, half blinded and agonized, Marceline screamed and hissed as she clawed at her skin. The attackers did not relent. While Marceline was temporarily disabled, they had regrouped and surrounded her. Thinking quickly, Marceline grabbed as much dirt as she could and rubbed it against her burning skin.  
It didn't stop the pain, but it dulled it enough for her to continue the fight.

"Holy water," she spat smugly. "You guys sure know your stuff. I'll give you that much."

Marceline took a breath and began to levitate off of the ground. Her eyes began to glow a fiery red and her hair thrashed like a nest of snakes. Her body suddenly grew and warped into a horrific mass of teeth and tentacles.

"But I am no mere vampire!" Marceline roared monstrously. "I am the Vampire Queen! You will have to try harder than that if you hope to survive this night!"

Much to her surprise, none of the attackers seemed even the slightest bit alarmed by her eldritch transformation. The smallest of the attackers held out a trigger switch. Marceline looked up at the cavern ceiling and noticed several blinking lights that she hadn't noticed before. Placed snugly next to the patches of glowing fungus were several explosive charges placed around the largest stalactite. The pieces all finally fell into place. This wasn't a random group of bounty hunters or mercenaries trying to make a name for themselves. This was a trap all along, one that had been set long in advance, and one that she was about to fall victim to. This had been planned and planned very well.

"Huh…you guys are good."

* * *

The cavern shook as the charges exploded, releasing the massive stalactite from the cave ceiling. Marceline let out a roar of pain as the stalactite pierced through her monstrous form. Overwhelmed by pain, Marceline transformed back into her human form. Using the dust and falling rocks as cover, Marceline moved as fast as she could towards the cave entrance. She was not going to win this fight. She needed to run, she needed to get help, she needed to survive!

Before Marceline could reach the mouth of the cave, something tightly coiled around her feet and tripped her.  
A pair of silver wire bolos were wrapped tightly around her ankles. Through the settling dust flew a wire lasso that wrapped tightly around her neck.  
With a loud gag, Marceline was yanked backwards. The three pig masked attackers now enclosed upon her, each one armed with a long silver prod with a crucifix attached to the end of it.

Panic and dread washed over the vampire queen at the sight of such ancient hunting tools. In a last desperate attempt, Marceline hissed and lunged towards the smallest attacker. Her effort was rewarded in the form of a large muzzle that clamped tightly around her face.

One by one, the attackers lanced her with their crucifixes, sapping her of her energy. The crosses burnt her harder than the sun ever could.

Finally, after a few more minutes of struggling, the fight was drained from her. Her eyes rolled back as she lost consciousness.

* * *

The earth shook and rumbled as a massive wall of clouds washed over the land. Nothing could be seen through the clouds.

But for those that were hidden nearby, they knew that something massive was moving across the land.

Whatever it was, it was using the clouds as cover. Once it passed, nothing of its presence would be left, save for the one-hundred-foot-wide gashes in the ground.

* * *

Marceline awoke from a restless fitful sleep only to find that she was trapped and in complete darkness. It did not take her long to realize what she was trapped in. She was trapped in a metal casket. She was too tired to panic; all of her strength was still drained from her.  
Through the casket she could tell that she was being moved, but to where, she did not know.

Tired and defeated, Marceline rested her head against the lid of the casket. Her still stinging eyes spotted something resting on the bottom to the casket next to her foot.

It was another tape recorder.

 _Why the frick not?_ She thought bitterly as she clicked the play button with her foot.

The tape recorder clicked, after a moment of crackling static, a voice spoke.

" _ **Hello, Marceline. You don't know me. But I know you. If you are playing this tape, then I have found you wanting."**_

 _Wanting…wanting of what?_ Marceline asked herself. _What did I do this time?_

" _ **By the time this tape finishes playing, your friends will already be in my possession. Do not struggle, for you will be joining them soon. I want to play a game."**_

Marceline couldn't help but chuckle weakly at this. Whatever mess she had gotten herself into, at least she wouldn't be going through it alone.

 _PB is gonna be totes steamed._ Marceline thought snidely before she slipped back into unconsciousness.

* * *

 **This was more fun to write than it should have been.**


	4. Chapter 4: The Fourth Piece

Chapter 4

* * *

As the land of Ooo sat in the darkness of night, one kingdom stood firmly against the dark. Burning brightly into the night was the infernal Fire Kingdom.  
Lakes of lava bubbled and stirred, and a thick blanket of smoke choked the sky, blocking any outside light from gracing its territory.  
While most would view this place as inhospitable, many strange creatures called this place their home.  
Packs of fire wolves roamed the land, free to come and go wherever they wished.

True to its namesake, the Fire Kingdom was home to several fire people. Beings of pure fire, they sought to consume and burn any and all they came across.  
They considered themselves to be evil, thought whether or not they truly were, was up for debate.  
They had gone through several rulers in their existence, each more brutal than the last.

But their most recent ruler was far different. Their new ruler was the Flame Princess, daughter of the ousted Flame King. Her rule was absolute, yet she was a fair ruler. She kept the more radical members of her court in line, and thus prevented many international incidents from escalating.

Along side her was her most trusted lieutenant; Cinnamon Bun. Once a half-baked underling of the Candy Kingdom, he had become the Princesses' closest companions. She trusted him with the fullest extent of her abilities.  
Yet, despite Cinnamon Bun's undying loyalty, Flame Princess still held a small place in her mind for doubt and distrust.

She had been hurt before, and the memory still burned her heart. Finn, her once closest friend and love had betrayed her trust and used her for his own personal needs. She didn't understand why he had done such a thing and now, she no longer cared.  
Finn had betrayed her, and she was determined to never let anyone betray her again.

Such a jaded view of things was not healthy, and Flame Princess knew that. But such a mindset was what had kept her alive as ruler of the Fire Kingdom for so long. Never let anyone in too close, or they might drive a dagger into your back.  
Despite this mindset, Flame Princess was not worried about threats from outside her kingdom.

Who would be foolish enough to attack the Fire Kingdom?

* * *

Flame Princess tossed and turned in her sleep as fitful dreams plagued her mind. In her dream she was stranded on a small rock of an island, surrounded by angry putrid black water. There was no sky, only darkness. Her flames could offer no light or warmth.

Then, over the roar of the waters that threatened to wash her island away came a loud piercing whirring sound.

A dull red light flooded from behind her, revealing the terror that was fast approaching. A wall of solid metal lined with rows upon rows of spinning circular saw blades.

She could not run, she could not hide, she was helpless. With a terrible grinding sound, the wall of bladed death overcame her.

* * *

With a scream, Flame Princess awoke from her nightmare with a jolt. Her heart pounded in chest as she tried to catch her breath.  
As the initial panic ended, Flame Princess let out a groan of exhaustion.

 _Three nights now._ She thought sadly. _Three nights of nightmares._

Each night, the nightmares would get worse. At first, they were merely unsettling. A few drops of water here, a low rumbling there, nothing too alarming.  
But each following night, the dreams would become more vivid, more real. This had been the worst she had had by far.

Flame Princess huffed angrily and stoked her flames. She was getting so frustrated with this nonsense.

All she wanted was one night of sleep. Was that too much to ask for?

As her anger dwindled, Flame Princess felt something poke her from under her blanket. After pulling the blanket away, she found what had been poking her.  
It was a small box with strange runes carved into it. On the lid of the box was the words 'For Player Four,' written in red.  
Despite her distrustful nature, Flame Princess' curiosity was far too strong. Cautiously, she opened the box and looked inside.  
Inside the box was a tape recorder covered in the same runes that lined the box. Next to the tape recorder were several photos sealed in thick protective glass.

"What is this?" she hissed as she looked over the photos, particularly Finn's photo.

'Player One' was written under Finn's photo. 'Player Two' was under Princess Bubblegum's. 'Player Three' was under Marceline's.  
Her flames suddenly died as she scanned over a photo of herself. The photo was of her sleeping, not a few moments ago.  
Her photo was new, meaning the one that took it was still in the palace.

Flame Princess burned angrily, melting the glass, and destroying the photos. Someone was toying with her and she would not stand for it.

"Cinnamon Bun!" she screamed loudly.

The door to her sleeping chambers flew open as her lieutenant rushed to her aid.

"What is it my queen?!" he asked, alarmed but unafraid.

"There is an intruder in the palace!" she huffed angrily as her flames grew size. "Find them and bring them to me!"

"Yes, my queen!" Cinnamon Bun responded as he drew his dagger from its sheath. "They will be yours."

As her faithful lieutenant rushed and gathered some extra guards, Flame Princess felt a small trembling. She passed it off as nothing but another one of the Fire Kingdom's many tremors. But the tremors persisted and slowly but surely began to grow stronger. If she didn't know better Flame Princess could have sworn that the tremors were getting closer to the palace. Growing even more uneasy than she had been, Flame Princess picked up the tape recorder and looked over it again.

"What do you have to say for yourself?" she asked bitterly.

With click, the tape recorder started to play.

" _ **Hello, Flame Princess. You don't know me. But I know you. If you are playing this tape, then I have found you wanting."**_

* * *

The ground shook and heaved as massive legs unfurled from within the cloud of black smog.

Like an ancient evolving creature, the obscured object effortlessly waded into the lake of lava. The liquid rock did nothing to hinder the object's movement.

Massive gears and cogs ground and spun as a web of chain factory lines began to activate. Suspended by sharp hooks were dozens of rotting pigs.  
One by one, the bloated carcasses were dropped into a massive grinder. The vile sludge that was produced was then pumped from a large basin into several containers.

Steam hissed as several long cannon barrels extended outward. With a loud whirring, the barrels all aligned themselves. Their target was within range.

Their target was the Fire Kingdom.

* * *

The palace was shaking harder than it ever had before. Flame Princess knew that this was no mere earthquake. This was something else, something worse. The tape recorder crackled before melting in her infernal grasp.

 _ **"I want to play a game."**_

Flame Princess looked out her window that oversaw her domain. Her eyes widened with awe and fear at what she saw.  
Over the lake of lava and fire, she could see something moving, something massive. The lava did not seem to be bothering it.  
All the lava did was bring a dull light underneath its giant form. It looked like a giant walking cloud of black smoke. With each step, the ground shook.  
With each step, it drew closer to the palace.

Suddenly, several loud booms sounded as the object fired a salvo.

With a deafening boom and splash, the salvo struck the palace, drowning it in putrid liquid and coating it in a thick layer of rotten gore.

Shell shocked, Flame Princess uneasily pushed herself off of the floor. She gagged at the stench that was overpowering the palace.

Her flames had been temporarily extinguished from the fetid sludge of the gore artillery.  
After reigniting herself, Flame Princess rushed back to where her window used to be.  
Through the giant hole in her bed chambers, Flame Princess could see that the places struck by the vile artillery were no longer burning.

"Guards, send troops to the gate! Do not let that thing get any closer!" she ordered firmly.

Quickly, several battalions of troops were moved to the gates. No one had ever tried to attack the palace so brazenly, and they would fight to their last to defend their kingdom. But hope quickly was extinguished as the cloud approached the gates. Despite their best efforts, none of the Flame Kingdom's soldiers could leave even a tiny mark on the object's hulking, lumbering form.

Flame Princess watched in horror as several hoses began to spray jets of gore down upon the defenders, extinguishing them.

The gates crumbled as rows upon rows of giant circular saw blades tore the building to shreds.

Another salvo of gore struck the palace, smothering more of its infernal residents. The ground cracked and heaved as the invader strode over the smoldering ruins.  
Flame Princess couldn't believe was she was seeing. Her kingdom was under attack, and none of her soldiers or guards could stop it.

* * *

"Choose." A cold voice spoke.

Flame Princess spun around to face the speaker. Standing firmly behind her was a feminine figure wearing a black and red robe.  
Their face was hidden underneath a pig mask.

"Choose." The figure spoke again.

Flame Princess roared and rose herself to full height. With a ferocious snarl, Flame Princess unleashed a stream of flames from her body.  
With a blue flash of light, the intruder summoned a wall of the thickest ice, shielding them from the flames.  
The figure snapped her fingers as jettisoned the wall towards Flame Princess.

The wall shattered and melted against her body, smothering her flames momentarily. Flame Princess hissed in pain as she tried to reignite herself, but her attacker would have none of it. A jet of ice and snow shot out of the attacker's hand. Flame Princess screamed in pain as her body was covered in snow.

"Choose." The figure demanded.

The door to Flame Princess' bed chambers was suddenly kicked open as Cinnamon Bun and ten other guards stormed the room.

"My queen, we have-"

Before the words could leave Cinnamon Bun's mouth, he and the other guards were snap frozen in a flash of blue light.

"Cinnamon Bun!" Flame Princess shouted in horror.

"Choose." The figure demanded, letting their impatience slip through their cold tone.

With a terrifying roar, Flame Princess burst into a pillar of flames.

She wasn't thinking anymore. All she felt now was pure, infernal rage. Without thinking, Flame Princess threw a massive ball of fire at the attacker.

The attacker quickly sidestepped out of the fireball's path, dodging it completely.

But the still frozen Cinnamon Bun and the guards were instantly shattered by the force of the fireball.

Flame Princess' fire quickly died as she saw what she had done.

"Cinnamon Bun…?" she rasped as the weight of what she had done came crashing down on her. Having forgotten about her surroundings, Flame Princess rushed to the remains of her shattered lieutenant. Hot tears of liquid fire dripped onto the floor as Flame Princess began to weep.

"What have I done?" she asked weakly. "How could I…?"

A sudden jet of ice blasted against Flame Princess, forcing her to the floor.

"Choose." The masked attacker hissed venomously.

Through her tears and anguish, Flame Princess found her voice.

"Choose what?!" she sobbed, unable to tear her eyes away from the remains of her friend.

The attacker tightly wrapped their hand behind Flame Princess' head and forced her to look out the gaping hole in the wall. Her kingdom was now smoldering underneath the shrouded monster. It wouldn't take much to finish off her kingdom, but if it stopped now, it could still be saved.

"You?" the attacker spoke with a tone that sent a chill through the air. "Or your kingdom?"

Flame Princess was silent as a maelstrom of emotion rampaged inside of her.

 _They wanted to get to me._ Flame Princess thought as the fire in her began to flicker and fade. _They never wanted my kingdom. They wanted me. It's my fault…Cinnamon Bun…_

"I surrender." She spoke with defeat heavy in her voice. "I'll come with you. Just please spare my kingdom."

* * *

An audible clink was heard as the attacker fastened a metal collar around Flame Princess' neck. Magical runes began to glow brightly on the metal. Flame Princess' flames began to die and burn dangerously low. Any lower and she would die.

Her attacker pulled her off of the floor. After taking one last look at her smoldering kingdom, Flame Princess felt a sharp pain as she was struck in the back of the head. With no need or will to fight, Flame Princess quickly slipped into unconsciousness.

* * *

 _ **Last chance to turn back...**_


	5. Chapter 5: The Game Begins

Chapter 5

* * *

Finn's eyes slowly opened as he awoke from his stupor. His vision was still foggy, and it was very dark. All he could see were four vague figures. He couldn't even tell if they were real, let alone alive.

"Oh, glob. My head is killing me." Finn groaned as he tried to set himself upright.

The ground was hard and cold, yet strangely smooth. A subtle musty smell was heavy in the unmoving air.

"What…? Where am…?" Finn slurred, his mouth still numbed.

He flexed his fingers until he could feel them properly. His right robotic prosthetic arm twitched and clamped together as the connection to his nervous system was reestablished. Finn groaned as a wave of nausea came over him.

"Jake…you there, bro?" Finn asked as he tried his best to fight through the dizziness.

Slowly, Finn pushed himself off of the ground. He felt like his ears were full of water and his murky vision wasn't helping his poor balance.  
After getting back on his feet, Finn took a moment to look around. His eyesight was still far too poor to see anything, but his hearing was quickly returning.  
Through the murkiness, Finn could hear groaning, heavy breathing, and weak sobbing. Wherever he was, he wasn't alone.

"Hello?" Finn asked as he took a small step forward. "Is someone there?"

As Finn took another step, something suddenly snagged his leg and tripped him. Finn hit the ground with a loud thud, jarring his already pounding head.  
The sudden pain shook the young adventure free from the numbness and fog. Finn quickly reached down his leg and found a large metal shackle bolted over his left ankle. The shackle was connected to the wall by a thick metal chain.

"What the flip?!" Finn exclaimed as he looked over the shackle. "What did -who did?!"

Finn scowled angrily as the bits of memory fell into place.

"Pig Man!" Finn shouted loudly as he pulled tightly against his leg shackle. "When I get out of this thing, I'm gonna math you up so hard!"

Despite his best efforts, the shackle would not break. After pulling and yanking the chain for a few minutes, Finn's strength quickly burnt out.

"Hey, look who's finally awake." A familiar feminine voice spoke out.

Turning his attention away from his chains, Finn felt his heart leap as his eyes fell upon the speaker. Setting in the corner on the opposite side of the room was Marceline.

"Marceline, is that you?" Finn asked, hoping that his eyes weren't playing tricks on him.

Marceline smiled weakly. "The one and only. Long time no see, Finn."

Marceline had been the first one to awaken from her fitful slumber. She had seen the pig masked creatures come and deliver their catches.  
She had tried to roust them from their stupor but found that she too was far too weak to do much.  
Fastened tightly around her wrists were shackles with some form of runes carved into the metal. The shackles were chained to the floor in front of her, binding her hands in front of her.

"F-finn…?" Another familiar voice weakly rasped. "M-marceline …?"

With a pained groan, Princess Bubblegum tried to set herself upright. Her body creaked and crackled as her stiffened form slowly loosened.  
Around her neck was a metal collar that was chained to the wall. After her body had grown more malleable, Princess Bubblegum, looked over to Finn and then to Marceline. A rush of relief and dread rushed through her. Relief, because she was amongst her closest friends. Dread, because they too had fallen prey to this trap.

"Hey PB," Marceline greeted halfheartedly. "Welcome to…whatever this is."

"Hi, Princess." Finn greeted happily.

Princess Bubblegum shivered as the last of the stiffness cracked out of her.

"Where are we?" Princess Bubblegum asked with a worry laden tone.

"Wherever they want us to be…" a voice answered sadly.

Curled up on the floor in the corner next to Marceline's was a very low burning Flame Princess.

"H-hey Phoebe." Finn responded with a nervous stutter.

Flame Princess only shot Finn a glance before turning away. Finn could tell that she still did not trust him, not that he could blame her.  
At least she was speaking to him again. Flame Princess had a heavy looking collar fastened around her neck. The collar was glowing with arcane runes.  
A thick chain was keeping her chained to the wall. Finn had seen enough magical items during his adventures to know that the runes were fire suppression runes.  
They wouldn't snuff out flames, but they would keep them from burning stronger.

* * *

"So, how did they get you three?" Marceline asked calmly, seeing no point in dancing around the issue. "Doubt you came here by choice."

Finn's face bunched up into an angry scowl as he recounted what had happened to him.

"Some pig faced guy snuck up and jabbed me with a needle full of crud." He stated bitterly as he showed her the swollen and bruised spot on his neck. "Knocked me out cold. How about you, PB?"

Princess Bubblegum sighed and turned her back to the group to show the hole that had been punched through her dress and the discolored spot on her back where her attacker had injected her with the chemical.

"More or less the same for me." She said sadly. "The intruder somehow got past the Gumball Guardians. They were hiding and waiting for me in my closet. How about you?"

Marceline smiled smugly and pulled up the remains of her shirt past her stomach. Though now healed and faded, several cross shaped marks were scattered along her stomach and back.

"It took three of those pig-faced goons to bring me down." She boasted, even though she knew that she had no right to boast. "They had to drop the cave ceiling on me just to soften me up."

She was lying, and Princess Bubblegum could tell. She knew Marceline was too proud to give her captors the credit they were due. The fact that they managed to capture her in the first place was testimony to their abilities.

"How about you Phoebe?" Marceline asked. "How did they get you?"

Flame Princess was quiet for a moment before she raised her head out from her huddled form. Her flames flickered before smoldering back down.

"I found a box in my chambers. Inside of it were photos of me, Finn, Princess Bubblegum, and you, Marceline." Flame Princess spoke, trying her best to keep her composure.

"You got a box too?" Finn asked, surprised. "So did I!"

"Me too." Marceline chimed in.

"I did as well." Princess Bubblegum stated calmly.

Flame Princess felt a twinge of anger for being interrupted, but she decided not to act on it.

"Sorry," Finn apologized, sensing her irritation. "Please, go on."

Flame Princess swallowed the lump in her throat as the memories of what had happened bubbled up to the surface.

"After I listened to the tape I found in the box, the Fire Kingdom was attacked."

"Attacked?!" all three of the cellmates exclaimed in disbelief.

"Attacked with what?!" Finn asked urgently.

Flame Princess shuttered as she recalled the things that she had witnessed.

"It was like a cloud on legs." She muttered coldly. "The lava didn't hinder it. My soldiers couldn't stop it. My kingdom…"

Fresh hot tears rolled down Flame Princess' cheeks as the physical and emotional pain of the attack tore into her again.

"They sent a magic user after me." She continued after wiping her eyes clear. "I couldn't see their face."

"Pig mask?" Marceline interjected. "Seems to be a common theme."

Flame Princess hissed as her anger swelled again. But her anger was quickly replaced by sorrow as the memory of what she had done came crashing down on her.

"They attacked me. They knew how to use ice magic. I couldn't beat them." Flame Princess spoke with a defeated tone. "They froze Cinnamon Bun, and…I."

It was too much for the young princess and she broke down into a fit of heavy sobbing. Princess Bubblegum wanted to press the question further, but a pleading look from Finn and Marceline both told her not to.

"They…gave me a choice." Flame Princess said through her tears. "Me, or my kingdom."

"A choice for what?" Princess Bubblegum asked.

"What lives and what dies." Flame Princess answered somberly. "I chose myself, to save my kingdom. You would have done the same."

* * *

A loud, earsplitting warning alarm buzzed, startling the four captives. With the low hum of electricity, several wall mounted lights flickered to life, flooding the small room with dull light. The walls were concrete, and the lights were protected by thick glass covers. The floor was tiled with a metal drain in the center.

"What's going on?" Finn asked worriedly as he stood up off the floor.

"No idea…" Marceline responded, just as clueless as Finn.

"Everyone, just stay calm." Princess Bubblegum ordered in a firm yet calm voice. "No one touch anything."

After an unnerving silence, the crackle of loud speaker coming to life echoed through the room.

 _ **"I am sure that you are wondering, why you are here."**_ A cold raspy voice spoke. _**"You deny culpability, no doubt, for the circumstances in which you find yourselves."**_

"What are talking about?!" Finn shouted angrily.

"Yeah, what did we do?!" Marceline shouted as she thrashed against her shackles.

The speaker crackled again before the voice spoke again.

 _ **"You four have all been blessed with wonderful gifts. Gifts of strength, knowledge, longevity, and power. But you have taken your gifts for granted, and in doing so have slowly lost your appreciation for them. You have lost appreciation for how they affect your lives and the lives of those around you. This lack appreciation has lead you here. The only way you will survive is to confess to the sins you have committed. The sins that have brought you here. The sins that you have convinced yourselves were virtues. The sins that have robbed you. The sins that have blinded you. The sins that have brutalized others. Confess and face your sins. The truth will set you free. But any attempt to violate my rules will kill you. I want to play a game."**_

None of the four captives knew how to respond. They all had been in danger before, but nothing like this. The Lich was one branch of evil. This was something entirely different. It was an evil with a different motive, one that could not be predicted.

 _ **"Your first tests will be beginning momentarily."**_ The voice spoke again. _**"Should you survive, you will be returned to this room to await your following test. Should you fail, then this will be the last time you see each other. It is your choice. Live, or die."**_

With the terrible sound of grinding gears and hissing pistons, the holding room began to separate to four separate directions.

 ** _"Remember, the truth will set you free."_**

One by one, each of the four captives' segment of the room dropped into an endless darkness. Each unaware of the hell they would find themselves waking to.

* * *

 **Things are about to get bloody.**


	6. Chapter 6: Bloodletting

Chapter 6

* * *

Finn's eyes stung as a bright light snapped to life with a loud bang. Once his eyes adjusted to the sudden light, he found himself in a small dark room.  
He also found that his ankle was no longer chained or shackled. However, he quickly noticed that he was sporting a new restraint.  
Locked painfully tight around Finn's neck was a thick metal collar. There was no chain connected to the collar, which Finn thought nothing of at first.  
But the more he thought about it, the more worried he became.

"What the…" Finn muttered as he ran his hands over the collar's surface.

Embedded into the cold metal of the collar were two large gemstones. One was green, and the other was a dark red. Both shimmered and hummed with a strange magical energy the likes of which he was unfamiliar with.

"Hey! What's the big idea?!" Finn shouted angrily into the darkness that surrounded his little illuminated spot.

As if to answer the young adventurer, a low mechanical hum suddenly filled the room. From out of the ceiling, a small projection player flickered to life.  
The projector shined its image down onto the wall before Finn. After a short count down, the image abruptly changed.  
The new image was that of a ventriloquist's dummy riding a red tricycle. The dummy had black messy hair that matched his black tuxedo.  
Its face was ghostly white, with protruding brow and cheeks. Red spirals were painted on the dummy's cheeks that matched his red bow tie.  
Two large black and red eyes stared down at the young adventurer.

 _ **"Hello Finn, welcome to your first test."**_ The dummy spoke as its slotted mouth opened and closed. _**"The songs of praise that those you have helped sing about you have painted a very distinct image. They paint the image of an adventurer, a champion, and a selfless hero. But we both know that isn't the case, is it?"**_

Finn stuck his tongue out defiantly and blew a razzberry up at the projection.

Ignoring Finn's response, the dummy continued his speech.

 _ **"You don't go on adventures for material gain, or for the praise that such actions would bring. Something that I find very noble of you. But the thing I find troubling is that you adventure for the simple thrill of it. It is not for the reward, or even the morality of the quest. But for the simple, primal pleasure it brings you. It is this pleasure that has clouded your view of the life you have been given. The life that you carelessly risk for the fleeting high that you get."**_

Finn hadn't put much thought into it, but the dummy wasn't completely wrong. Sure, Finn had never adventured solely for the rewards, but he hated to admit that he probably should have questioned the morality of some of his quests. And, yes, he did find the rush of adventuring a bit addictive, but there was no way that it was his sole motivation.

 _ **"You are no stranger to sacrifice. Your right arm is testimony to this. But you didn't choose to make that sacrifice, did you? So, the lesson was not learned that day."**_

Suddenly, a third light flashed to life, illuminating a large, deep thick glass basin. Finn crept closer to the glass basin and noticed that setting at the bottom of it was a set of keys attached to a tiny buoy. Standing ominously before the basin was a metal box frame with rows of saw blades jutting up from underneath a series of metal braces. Through the metal frame was a hand grip with a red button on the end. A thin metal tray sloped down from underneath the metal box and lead to the glass basin.

"What the flip is this?" Finn asked, awestruck.

 _ **"This is how you learn your lesson."**_ The dummy spoke.

"What lesson?" Finn asked as dread began to creep through his mind.

 _ **"The lesson of self-sacrifice."**_

* * *

Finn's head and chest suddenly began to pound. It felt like someone was stomping down onto his chest. He looked down at his arm and saw that his veins were bulging.

 _ **"By now you will have noticed the pain in your chest."**_ The dummy spoke. _**"The human body can hold one-point-five gallons of blood but can only loose zero-point-fifty-three gallons before shutting down."**_

Finn let out a painful groan as the gemstones around his collar flashed.

 _ **"The two gemstones on your collar are of my own design and enchantment. The green one is a gemstone of healing. Any wound you inflict will quickly be healed. The red gemstone is one of sanguine magic. It forces the human body to produce more blood than it ever could naturally."**_

The pieces were beginning to slide into place in Finn's head, and he really didn't like where this was going.

 _ **"The keys to your collar are at the bottom of the basin that you see before you."**_ The dummy spoke again. _**"The game is simple. Fill up the basin and free yourself. Or, do nothing and fill up with more blood than your body can hold until you burst."**_

Finn let out another cry as another sharp pain tore through his chest.

 _ **"Live or die."**_ The dummy spoke. _**"The choice is yours."**_

With a flicker, the projector went dark, leaving Finn alone.

* * *

Panic rushed through him as Finn tried to force the collar off of his neck. But with each passing moment, the pains in his chest only grew worse. After one last attempt to pry the collar off, Finn relented.

"Alright, dummy. I'll play your game." He spat angrily as he marched over towards the metal box frame.

Finn took one last look at his arm before carefully sliding it into the box. He flinched as the cold metal of the saw blades gently grazed his skin.  
His fingers firmly grasped the hand grip. Finn looked down at the keys at the bottom of the empty glass basin.

"That is gonna take a lot to fill…" he muttered nervously.

Finn shook his head and huffed loudly as he tried to ready himself.

"Don't chicken out now! This thing has got nothing on you!" Finn shouted as he hyped himself up. "You beat the Lich, you can beat this!"

After taking another moment to ready himself, Finn steeled his mind and braced himself.

"This is for you PB, Marcy, and Phoebe!" Finn shouted as he pressed the red button.

With a terrifying whir, the saw blades sprang to life. They effortlessly cut through Finn's wrist like a knife through butter.  
They cut through the skin and tissue until they finally sliced clean through his veins. Blood sprayed out into the box frame and splattered across Finn's terrified face. Finn screamed in pain and let go of the button, silencing the saw blades. Finn felt his stomach lurch as he watched his blood gush out from his shredded wrist and pour down into the basin. Finn was no stranger to pain, but he had never truly grown immune to it. The white hot agony that he was feeling was like nothing he had felt before.

"Okay, okay, okay, you got this." Finn stammered as his legs wobbled. "It's just a little blood. No biggie."

A wave of dizziness washed over the young adventurer as the blood loss began to set in. Finn's eyes followed the crimson stream down into the basin. It was hardly even filled.

Suddenly, the green gemstone flashed, and Finn's arm stopped bleeding. This was followed by the red gemstone flashing, sending another jolt of pain tearing through Finn's chest.

"Are you kidding me?!" Finn shouted in angry disbelief.

It didn't take long for Finn to figure out the sick twist to the dummy's game. Cutting himself once wouldn't be enough.  
The green gemstone would always heal the wound, while the red gemstone would continue to force his body to produce more blood.  
The only way to keep a constant flow of blood was to continuously cut open his arm.  
He wouldn't bleed to death so long as the red gemstone was stuck around his neck.  
And in order to get the keys from the bottom of the basin, he was going to need to keep bleeding.

Finn felt yet another pain in his chest, this time rather than panicking the young adventurer, it galvanized him.  
Finn pulled off his signature hat and held it between his teeth, giving him something to bight down on.  
Finn quickened his breathing as he readied himself for the horrible shock that was approaching.

"Let's do this." Finn hissed as he grabbed the handle.

With a press of the button, the saw blades awoke once more and sliced into Finn's freshly healed wrist. Finn screamed through his teeth as he bit down hard onto his wadded-up hat. Blood gushed and poured out as the blades spun loudly. With each heartbeat, a blast of crimson splattered against the box frame and pooled into the glass basin. With each heartbeat, the pressure on Finn's chest lessened. The green gemstone flashed green, once again, healing his wounded arm.  
This time, Finn wasted no time in pressing the button. He screamed in agony as the saw blades once again sliced through his healed skin. Crimson surged out of his mangled arm and pooled into the basin below. Slowly, the blood level in the basin began to rise, and with it, his keys to freedom.

* * *

Finn eventually lost track of time. He was exhausted, both mentally and physically. With each flash of green, Finn would press the button and carve open his wrist.  
The pain never relented. Every time he pressed the button, the pain was still as fresh as it had been since the beginning of his nightmare of a test.  
His eyes lazily watched the basin fill with his life blood as the minutes dragged on.  
The metallic stench of blood filled the dark room, leaving Finn in a constant nauseous state.

"Woah, that's a lot of blood, dude." A familiar voice spoke.

Finn looked above him to see the happy face of his brother.

"Jake, man am I glad to see you." Finn said dreamily, dropping his hat out of his mouth. "Can you believe the get up this guy has me stuck in?"

"Yeah, it's a doozy alright." Jake said with his usual confident voice. "But only you can get yourself out of it."

Finn was confused. If Jake was here, then why wasn't he going to help him free? A horrible thought tore through his mind.

"You're not really here, are you, Jake?" Finn asked quietly, closing his eyes and prying to glob the he was wrong.

Finn opened his eyes, and he found that he was once again alone. No Jake, no help, nothing. No one was going to help him, and he knew it. Tears began to swell in Finn's eyes. In that moment, he had never felt more alone.

Sadness was quickly replaced by anger. Finn picked up his hat off the blood slick floor and placed it back between his teeth.  
His wild, crazed eyes looked out over the basin. He had easily drained more than three gallons into it, double what the human body was supposed to produce and over four times what the human body was meant to lose before shutting down. But none of that mattered to Finn. The keys that once eluded his grasp, were now so close that he could practically touch them. All he needed, was to give just a little more blood.

"Alright, all or nothing!" Finn growled as he braced himself. "This one is for you, Jake."

Finn pressed the button again, waking the saw blades from the momentary slumber. He was so tired that he couldn't even bring himself to scream as the blades sliced through his tender flesh once again. All he could feel was the warmth of his blood as it ran out of his body and pooled into the basin.  
Finally, after what felt like an eternity, the basin was filled, and the keys were within reach.

Finn quickly pulled his arm out of the box frame and let his arm hang loosely to his side. Using his robotic arm, Finn stretched out over the pool of blood and plucked out the keys. With his still bleeding wrist, Finn fumbled with the slick keys until he managed to get them into the collar's keyhole.  
With an audible click, the collar fell off, freeing Finn from the magical powers of the gemstones. A blessing, and a curse.

Had Finn waited just a little bit longer, the green gemstone could have healed his gashed wrist and stopped the bleeding.

"Yep…didn't think that one through." Finn muttered as he watched his blood seep down his arm.

Thinking quickly, Finn took off his shirt and tied it tightly around his arm, just above his wrist. His improvised tourniquet did little to stop the bleeding.

"Oh, man. I really donked this up!" Finn exclaimed as his legs began to grow weak.

Finn's vision began to fade as blood loss began to set in. Through the darkness, a door opened, and the room was flooded with a bright harsh light.

Two figures rushed into the room and restrained the young adventurer.

"Pig people!" Finn shouted as he struggled against his assailants.

One of the pig-masked figures grabbed Finn's still bleeding wrist. The assailant's hand was made of metal and it glimmered in the harsh light.  
With a loud metallic crack and a hiss of steam, something clamped down hard against Finn's open wounds.

Too weak to scream, Finn managed to let out a squeak of pain as the assailant released his hand.  
Driven haphazardly into his wrist were several surgical staples, sloppily closing most of his wounds.

The second assailant held their hand over Finn's arm, and with a flash of blue light, encased it in ice.

Overwhelmed by pain and blood loss, Finn's eyes rolled back into his head, and his body went limp.

* * *

The two figures each took Finn by the arms and began to drag him out of the test chamber.

"What do you think _he_ sees in this batch?" the first figure asked, their mask and robes hiding their femininity.

The second figure remained silent, their mind was solely focused on the task at hand.

"Here I thought I was the one that gave people the cold shoulder." The first figure spoke with a hint of amusement.

The two figures walked into the familiar confines of the holding room.

"Looks like he's the first to finish." The first figure stated as they roughly dropped Finn in the center of the room. "I wonder how the others are doing."

The second figure keeled down and rolled Finn over onto his back. They lingered on his face for a moment, running their fingers along his features.

"Uncanny, isn't it?" the first figure asked. "Come, we are needed elsewhere."

With nothing left to be said the two figures left through an open door, leaving Finn alone in the dimly lit room.

* * *

As the two figures walked down one of the countless hallways, the first figure spoke.

"Do you think he has what it takes to win the game?"

The second figure was silent before a cold, and collected female voice spoke.

"I know he does." The figure stated firmly.

"And why is that?" the first figure asked curtly.

A hidden smile stretched across the second figure's face.

"Because I survived the same tests he will take."

* * *

 **I told you there would be blood...**

 **Been a while since I've had to get this graphic. But with Saw, you either go big and bloody or you go home.**

 **Hope you've enjoyed this little taste of what is to come.**

 **Next Time, Princess Bubblegum gets one hell of a toothache...**


	7. Chapter 7: Bird Cage

Chapter 7

* * *

Princess Bubblegum awoke with a jolt. Her head was pounding, and her neck was hurting. It felt like her head was heavier for some odd reason.  
Her mouth was absolutely killing her. All she could taste was metal, and the sweet sugary syrup that acted as her blood.

 _Where am I now?_ She asked herself as she shook the dizziness from her head. _And why does my mouth hurt so much?_

She ran her tongue through her mouth and winced in pain She tried to open her mouth only to realize with horror that she couldn't.  
Something heavy was stuck over her mouth, something made of metal. She ran her tongue through her mouth again.  
This time, she noticed two thick metal plates that were wedged between her mouth. Her eyes darted from left to right.  
Just out of the corner of her eyes, she could see a metal frame that was connected to several springs and two large gears.

 _What is this thing?_ She asked as she started to panic.

She tried to move and free herself but was unable to. To add to her horror, Princess Bubblegum found that she was strapped into a heavy wooden chair.  
Her heart sank even further once she noticed her third tool of imprisonment. Surrounding her was a metal cage. The cage was only ten feet long and ten feet wide.  
Her chair was bolted into the center of the cage. Princess Bubblegum pulled against her restraints, but it was no use, the restraints would not give out.

* * *

With a loud crackle and flash of bright light, an old pre-mushroom war television snapped to life, starling the already panicked princess.  
The static heavy image sharpened to reveal the white face of a ventriloquist's dummy looking away from the camera.

Princess Bubblegum watched with bated breath as the dummy's head slowly turned towards the camera.

 _ **"Hello, Princess. Welcome to your first test."**_ The dummy spoke with a calm yet malicious voice. _ **"For centuries you have ruled over your people. You took a wasteland and turned it into a thriving, sugary kingdom. You took something as simple as candy and gave it life and free will. It takes a great mind to accomplish such feats. And yet, you have grown complacent in the face of these accomplishments. You no longer appreciate the lives that your science has created. You see application rather than potential. You see your people as test subjects rather than the living beings that they are. You have squandered your intelligence for personal gain, rather than the betterment of your people. Your mind was meant for better things. I know this, and should you survive this test, you will as well."**_

Princess Bubblegum was beside herself as she thought about the things the dummy had accused her of.

 _I haven't grown complacent._ She told herself, denying the dummy's accusations. _And I don't see my people as test subjects!_

A small glimmer of doubt suddenly wormed its way into the princess' mind. She had to admit that lately, she had been a lot more focused on science then she had been before. With the Lich defeated and Ooo safe, Princess Bubblegum had more time to spend in her labs now than she had before. But never had she viewed her people as test subjects. She quickly forced these thoughts out of her mind. She had more pressing issues at hand.

 _ **"The device you are wearing is one of my oldest creations. It is hooked into your upper and lower jaws. When the timer at the back goes off, your mouth will be permanently ripped open. Think of it like a reverse bear trap."**_

The television flickered and showed a foam head with the same device locked over it. Princess Bubblegum watched with trepidation as she heard the ticking of the timer on the television. There was a loud clang that was immediately followed by a louder bang as the device snapped open, utterly destroying the foam head. Princess Bubblegum let out a small scream of terror at the sight of what this horrid device was capable of. Her rubber body was very malleable and could stretch to some degree, but not even her body would survive the sheer brutal force of the device.

 _ **"Once the timer starts to count down, you will only have sixty seconds to free yourself from the device and your cage. However, take note that there is no key."**_

 _No key?!_ Princess Bubblegum exclaimed as pure terror flooded through her body. _If there is no key, then how am I supposed to free myself?!_

" _ **Look around, Princess."**_ The dummy ordered. _**"Know that I am not lying. If you wish to free yourself, you will have to think quickly. Use your head, Princess."**_

A loud click sounded. Princess Bubblegum's blood ran cold. The timer had just been set.

 _ **"Live or die, make your choice."**_

The television flickered, and then turned off.

* * *

Princess Bubblegum thrashed as struggled against her restraints. She could hear the loud, constant ticking of the timer counting down in her ear.

 _If only I could slip my hand through one of the restraints!_ She thought angrily as she tugged against the restraint.

At that moment, an idea formed. Princess Bubblegum shook whatever doubt she had from her mind and readied herself for what she was about to do.  
With as much strength as she could muster, Princess Bubblegum thrashed her upper body down and smashed the jagged front of the device into her left hand.  
She let out a small squeal of pain before repeating the action. The sharp metal of the trap easily smashed and tore the skin on her hand, causing her sweet syrupy ichor to bleed out. It didn't take long for her to bleed enough to dampen the leather of the restraint.  
Princess Bubblegum let out a scream of pain as she pulled her heavily wounded hand through the tight restraint.  
With one hand now free, the princess wasted no time in undoing the restraint on her other hand.

The loud ticking of the timer only made Princess Bubblegum panic even further. While she was freed from the chair, she was still stuck in the horrid device and the small cage that imprisoned her. Time was not on her side, and she knew it. Desperate, Princess Bubblegum began to slam the front of the trap into the bars of the cage.  
She tried the same action with each side of the cage. Each time, she would only leave herself more disoriented and hurt. With a loud, desperate scream, Princess Bubblegum slammed head first into the cage again. But rather than the usual 'clunk' that she would have received, she was met with a loud 'ping' sound. She paused then repeated the action. Again, the sound reverberated up and down the bars. There was only one reason the sound would be different. Those two bars were made of weaker metal, and they were hollow.

 _He told me to use my head, and that there was no key._ The Princess recalled. _What if he was being literal?_

A plan quickly formed. A desperate plan, but a plan none the less. Princess Bubblegum could tell that the metal of the device was strong, but could the same be said about its internals and springs?

 _I really hope I'm right!_

Princess Bubblegum twisted her neck to the side as much as she could and wedged the front of her trap between the cage bars.

The ticking grew louder as the timer neared its end.

 _Please let me be right!_ Princess Bubblegum pleaded as she shut her eyes and held onto the cage bars tightly.

* * *

With an earsplitting bang, the device suddenly snapped open, only to be caught between the weak cage bars.  
Princess Bubblegum screamed in pain as her mouth was pried open. Syrup and saliva dripped from her wide-open mouth.  
The sound of straining metal echoed throughout the room as both the trap and the metal bars fought against the other.

Princess Bubblegum sobbed as she felt the trap open further ever so slightly. She wanted to go home. She wanted to wake up and find out that this was all some horrible dream. But the pain in her jaws were all the proof that she needed to remind herself that she was indeed awake, and that this was really happening.

Princess Bubblegum let out another scream as the trap strained and opened a few inches further, splitting her lips and gums.  
Just when all hope seemed lost, Princess Bubblegum heard a loud snap followed by several smaller snaps. Screw by screw and spring by spring, the device began to fall apart. Her gamble had paid off.

* * *

With a loud clang, Princess Bubblegum felt the device go slack. Carefully, she pulled her head away from the metal nightmare. A sharp pain cut through her mouth as the metal plates in her mouth cut deeply into the top of her mouth. More syrup pooled into her mouth as two needle thin holding pins snapped out of place.  
With one final pull, Princess Bubblegum yanked her head out of the death trap.

Freed from the reverse bear trap, the princess coughed and gagged as she spat out a mouthful of syrup, saliva, and odd bits and pieces of metal.  
The pain in her jaw was indescribable. She knew that had her plan not worked the moment it did, her jaw would have easily been broken.

After wiping the tears from her eyes, Princess Bubblegum noticed that the two bars she had used were now bent just enough for her to slip through. As though to congratulate her for her escape, a door slid open on the wall. Before leaving her cage, Princess Bubblegum kneeled down and picked up the two, small needle-like holding pins off of the floor.

"I might need these later." She said to herself.

With the way out now open, Princess Bubblegum carefully slipped through the bent cage bars and rushed to the exit.

* * *

Harsh light stung her eyes as the princess walked through the doorway. Once inside, the door slammed shut behind her.  
She let out a sob of defeat.  
She was back in the holding room.

Her sorrow was quickly replaced with shock as she found Finn splayed out on the floor.

"Finn, thank glob you're alive!" Princess Bubblegum exclaimed happily as she hushed to his side.

Then she noticed the blood, and the horrible state the young adventurer was in.

"Finn, what happened to you?!" she asked as she kneeled down beside him.

Finn's eyes briefly opened before closing again.

"You're not real…your just in my head." Finn muttered weakly. "All in my head…"

Princess Bubblegum carefully lifted up his arm and gasped at how wounded it was. His arm was red and blue from bruises and what looked like frostbite.  
He had several massive gashes in his arm that were being held shut by sloppily applied medical staples. Several of the staples had popped out, leaving him to bleed slowly.

"Hold on Finn. I've got you." Princess Bubblegum assured the wounded adventurer as she propped him up against herself.

She withdrew the two holding pins from her pocket and then tore off a few strips from her shirt. After tying an unraveled thread to one of the holding pins, Princess Bubblegum tried her best to sew up the opened wounds on Finn's arm.

Finn let out a yelp of pain and opened his eyes.

"Y-you're real? He stammered weakly. "You're really here?"

Princess Bubblegum gave him a small smile and nodded her head.

"Yes, I'm real, you goof." She said softly. "I'll get you fixed up in a moment."

Finn smiled as his vision grew dark again. He couldn't even feel the pain in his arm anymore. He was so happy that Princess Bubblegum was alive.

"Now I just…gotta go save…Marcy…" Finn slurred sleepily as he quickly lost consciousness. "And Phoebe…"

Panic rippled through Princess Bubblegum as Finn's body went limp.

"Finn? Finn, please stay with me, Finn!" she shouted as she shook him.

She pressed her ear against his chest, then checked his pulse. He had one, but it was very weak. Princess Bubblegum wrapped Finn's arm in the strips she had torn from her shirt. They would slow the bleeding for a while.

"Please, Finn, you have to wake up." She pleaded as she dragged him from the center of the holding room. "We need you!"

With her back against the wall, Princess Bubblegum slid to the floor and propped Finn's unconscious body against her own. Tears rolled down her face as Princess Bubblegum held Finn tightly in her arms.

"Ooo needs you." She sobbed as sadness and fear crashed down over her. "The Candy Kingdom needs you."

Whatever this place was, they needed to escape it. It was evil, and it was smart, almost analytically so. It knew more about them than they wished to admit.  
How long had this thing been doing this? When did it start? Why did it start? What was it? More importantly, why did it choose them?  
Princess Bubblegum was too exhausted and hurt to ponder on such questions. Her friend was alive, and she needed to help him stay that way.

Princess Bubblegum shivered. She was so cold, but Finn was so warm. With tears running down her cheeks, Princess Bubblegum pressed her forehead against the back of Finn's neck and whimpered.

"I need you…"

* * *

 **It is only going to get more bloody after this.**


	8. Chapter 8: Excess

Chapter 8

* * *

Marceline let out a startled hiss as a bright light snapped to life, temporarily blinding the vampire. She blinked the spots from her eyes and gave an annoyed growl.  
The rattling of chains confirmed her suspicions that she was still shackled, but now she also was sporting a metal collar around her neck. How is got there, she couldn't begin to guess.

"Alright, I'm getting tired of this!" she shouted up towards the light. "Just let me and my friends go, and I promise not to hurt you too much!"

She growled again as her demand was met with silence. She looked down at her shackles and smirked.

"Fine, I'll just bust out myself!" she shouted defiantly. "Just you wait until I get these things off!"

Marceline reached deep inside of herself and tapped into the dark powers that she held within. If her human form couldn't break the shackles, then a more inhuman one surely would. Just as she had an image of what she wanted to transform herself into, a white-hot pain tore through her like electricity. She snarled and fell to the floor, blinded by pain. The shock broke her concentration, and she lost the form that she had desired. The moment the form was lost, the pain stopped.

"What the heck?" she panted as she looked down at her shackles.

Unsure of what had just happened, Marceline gathered herself.

 _Let's try that again._ She said to herself as she shut her eyes.

Once again, Marceline tapped into her dark heritage and sought a form to better suit her needs.

Once again, her body was struck down by an unyielding pain. With a thud, Marceline's body hit the floor. Her body felt incredibly weak as she pushed herself back to her feet. Shaken and pained, Marceline looked down at her shackles. This time, she could see several runes etched into the metal of her shackles. They glowed a dull red as the pain subsided. She then ran her hands over the surface of her collar. She could feel similar runes carved into the metal as well. It was then that a terrifying reality came to light. Her powers were being blocked. Any attempt at using her powers would result in the white-hot pain she had felt.

"Oh, that is so not good…" Marceline muttered, letting a hint of fear slip through. "Guess I really am in trouble."

With a tired huff, Marceline took a quick look around herself. The room that she was in was completely empty save for the single light that shown from the ceiling.  
On the floor were several markings of unknown nature. Marceline couldn't tell if they were caused from natural wear and tear or artificially made.  
Either way, she knew that she wouldn't like the answer. She then spotted a security camera and a loud speaker placed in one corner of the otherwise empty room.

"Alright, I'll bite. What do you want?!" Marceline shouted up towards the camera with an annoyed tone.

A blaring screech blasted out of the loud speaker. The screech ended abruptly with a crackle of static.

 _ **"Hello Marceline, welcome to your first test."**_

Marceline shuddered at the malice that was scarcely hidden by faceless voice. She recognized it as the voice from the tape, and as the voice from the holding room she and the others were chained in.

 _ **"You once prided yourself as a vampire hunter. You hunted and slew countless of the night dwellers, that is, until you fell to the curse yourself. How long has it been? How long has it been since you felt the beating of your heart? How long has it been since you knew the warmth of your own body? How long has it been since you felt the warmth of the sun?"**_

Marceline scowled and bared her fangs up at the camera. She didn't need any reminders of what it was like to be a creature of the night. She could never forget the things that she could no longer enjoy. But she never let that get in her way of living her life.

 _ **"Immortality, a blessing and a curse, isn't it?"**_ the voice continued. _**"Time is fleeting, yet time is something that you have always had plenty of. This excess of time has driven you to find different ways of filling the hole in your soul. You try to heal yourself by fulfilling your basic desires. But no matter how much you indulge these primal desires, it never is enough, is it? No amount of music, or drink, or companionship is enough to relieve you of the emptiness. It is this gluttony that has driven you down the path that has brought you here."**_

Marceline's ears twitched. Between each word the voice spoke, she could swear that she could hear the faint sound of tape reel clicking and turning. Marceline shrugged it off, she had more pressing matters at hand.

"You didn't answer my question!" She shouted angrily up at the camera. "What do you want?!"

The speaker was silent for a moment before crackling back to life.

 _ **"I want to play a game."**_

* * *

Marceline was suddenly yanked out of the air as the chains connected to her shackles retracted into the floor, forcing her into a standing position. The room shook and trembled as the sound of gears and pistons roared. With a loud metallic grinding sound, the ceiling began to slide apart. Marceline's eyes widened as a large glass vat was slowly lowered from the ceiling. The vat easily held more than three gallons of liquid. Attached to the bottom of the vat was a metal base with a nozzle and release valve. The light above the vat glimmered through, revealing the liquid's red color. A familiar metallic tang filled her noise as the vat lowered further.

"Blood?" she questioned quietly. "Is that blood?!"

Her question went unanswered the vat finally stopped descending. The nozzle was directly level with Marceline's mouth. Her chains suddenly gave enough slack for her to move her arms.

The loud speaker crackled back to life as the faceless voice spoke again.

 _ **"There is up to one-point-five gallons of blood within a human body. The stomach of an average vampire can easily hold that much. The vat you see before you is currently holding three gallons of blood. That is three times the amount the average vampire's stomach can hold before bursting."**_

Marceline's widened eyes spotted a set of keys floating at the top of the vat. She looked down at her shackles and then back up the keys.

"No way." She spoke with a slight tremble in her voice.

At the sound of a buzzer, four slots on the floor opened up. Out of the floor sprang four metal frames that were lined with long spikes. The glimmer from the light above showed that the spikes were cast from silver. Several of the spikes were perfectly positioned so that they aligned with her heart. With a snap of electricity, a single electric clock flickered to life on the wall. The clock was set to count down from sixty seconds.

 _ **"Once the timer runs down, the spikes will be driven into you, killing you. The game is simple. Empty the vat before the timer runs out and win your freedom. But be mindful not to spill too much blood."**_

At that moment, a tiny droplet of blood dripped from the nozzle and stained the floor. An unearthly red light suddenly glared up from the floor as a pentagram burned through the dirt and dust. The spiked frames suddenly lurched forward several inches closer towards Marceline. She couldn't believe it. This wasn't just your average dark magic. This was ancient, foul, nameless dark magic. Magic that not even her father dared dabble in. Not only that, but it had been somehow worked into the mechanisms of the device. That took skill, not just with magic, but with engineering.

 _ **"Should any blood spill onto the pentagram, it will speed up the timer and with it the spikes. Like I said, the game is simple. Empty the vat before the timer runs out. Or, do nothing and let the spikes impale you."**_

Marceline could not believe what she was hearing. It had to be some kind of sick joke. But the clicking of gears and the shimmering red vat of blood before her proved otherwise.

 _ **"Live or die. The choice is yours."**_

With one final crackle of static, the speaker fell silent.

* * *

Marceline felt sick as she looked up at the vat of blood that stood before her. Her eyes darted in every direction for a way out. With the spiked frames inching closer with every second, Marceline didn't have much time to think. She knew what she had to do, she just really wished that she didn't have to do it.

"Chill, Marcy, you can do this." She reassured herself uneasily. "You've done your share of keg stands before. You got this."

With a trembling hand, Marceline gripped the release valve. She licked her lips nervously and swallowed the lump in her throat. Her eyes quickly glanced up at the keys that floated at the top of the vat. Marceline shook the doubt out of her mind and readied herself. She was thankful for her empty stomach.

"Down the hatch I guess." She muttered bitterly before placing her mouth over the nozzle.

The release valve squeaked before unleashing a torrent of blood into Marceline's mouth and down her throat. She gagged from the force of the flow before swallowing the warm liquid in a sickening gulp. A sudden warmth spread through her body. She had not tasted blood this rich before. Yet, its flavor was familiar to her for some reason. She felt her stomach churn as it began to fill with the crimson fluid. Once the level of the vat had been drained past the one-gallon mark, Marceline quickly turned the valve and stopped the flow of blood. Her stomach was more than half full and she knew that she still had two more gallons to force down.

 _Pace yourself, Marcy._ She told herself as she hiccupped. _Only two more left._

Knowing that the timer would only keep counting down, Marceline groaned and placed her mouth back over the nozzle. With a turn of the valve, the vat bubbled and began to gush more of the iron rich liquid into her mouth. With every passing moment, Marceline could feel her stomach fill. It was becoming painful for her now. She could hear the gears that guided the spikes clicking as they drew ever closer.

Despite all of the dangers and distractions, her mind was still stuck over the taste.

 _Where have I tasted this before?_ She asked herself as she downed another mouthful of blood.

It was so familiar. It was rich and sweet. Almost sickeningly so. Suddenly, a dark realization sent horror coursing through her mind and soul. The blood that she was being forced to drink was human blood. But not just any human blood. The blood she was drinking was Finn's.

* * *

Crimson surged up from her stomach as she gagged at the terrible revelation. She was drinking Finn's blood, her best friend's blood, the blood that he needed to survive! Blood gushed up through her nose and out of her mouth and splattered on the floor. The pentagram burned brightly as the blood ran into the markings. The timer on the wall leapt forward ten seconds. Like the evil clockwork that it was, the spikes all lurched closer towards Marceline.

"What did you do to Finn?!" she screamed up at the camera. "What did you do to him?!"

With no answer, Marceline quickly looked back at the timer. She now only had twenty seconds to complete this sick game. Her terror-stricken eyes looked back up at the half empty vat of blood that stood before her. There was only one way that she was going to find out what had happened to her friends, and that was to win the game. Tears began to roll down her cheeks as she placed her mouth back over the nozzle.

 _I'm so sorry Finn._ She thought dreadfully as she turned the valve.

* * *

The warm crimson fluid once again gushed out of the nozzle and down Marceline's throat. She gagged but kept it from rising back up. She cupped her hands under her mouth to keep any from spilling out. After five excruciating seconds, Marceline had managed to drain one more gallon from the vat. Her stomach hurt so badly now. She could feel her stomach stretch past what it was capable of. She lurched as her gag reflex fought against the flow of blood.

Marceline's eyes darted back up to the vat of blood. It was almost empty, and the keys would soon be within reach. Her eyes darted back to the timer. She only had fifteen seconds left. Panicked, Marceline turned the valve as far as it could go and unleashed the full flow from the vat. It was like trying to keep a fire hose stuck in her mouth as a torrent of blood drained down her aching throat. She lurched in pain as her insides strained against the volume of blood that was being forced into her. She felt like she was going to explode. She could feel the tips of the spikes poking against her shoulders. She was running out of time.

With fear widened eyes, Marceline looked up at the vat just as the last ounce of blood emptied out. Marceline gagged as something got stuck in the back of her mouth. It was the key, it had passed through the nozzle with only the chain stopping it from sliding down her throat. Marceline quickly pulled the chain out of her throat by the key chain, trying her best not to vomit. With blood slick hands, Marceline struggled with the tiny key until she finally managed to unlock her shackles. She ran her hands around her collar but couldn't find any lock. She was willing to deal with the collar later.

With only ten seconds to spare, Marceline carefully squeezed past the spiked frames that were only seconds away from shutting on her. She winched in pain as the silver spikes cut against her distended stomach. She clasped her hand tightly over her mouth as she fought back against the blood rising up from her stomach. With a loud snap, the spiked frames locked tightly in place around the spot where Marceline had been standing.

A bright light suddenly cut through the darkness as a door slid open on the wall. A rush of short-lived relief rushed through her veins.  
She had done it, she had survived.  
She had won.  
Nauseated and agonized, Marceline slowly floated towards the exit.

* * *

The sound of a door sliding open pulled Princess Bubblegum from her moment of silence.

"Hello, is someone there?" she asked as she gently placed Finn's head on floor.

Through the darkness floated a very bloated and sick Marceline. She was clutching her stomach and clasping her hand tightly over her mouth. She had several puncture wounds on her chest and stomach. Blood had stained the front of her shirt and was running down from her mouth. The moment the door slid shut behind her, Marceline dropped to the floor.

Her body lurched as a torrent of blood erupted out of her mouth. Princess Bubblegum screamed and fell back as she tried to avoid the fast-growing crimson pool on the floor. Marceline heaved again, forcing more blood up from her burning stomach. She felt her ribs crack as her stomach muscles contracted again. The surge of blood eventually subsided with a weak gag as Marceline's body went limp. She was exhausted and in so much pain.

"Marceline, what happened to you?!" Princess Bubblegum asked as she walked around the pool of blood. She gently placed her hands on Marceline's shoulders and rolled her onto her back. Marceline's eyes snapped open and she let out a gasp. Her eyes darted in every direction. The room was so bright, and the stink of blood was still stuck in her nose, disorienting her, and adding to her panicked state.

"He made me…he made me…" Marceline muttered incoherently as her senses slowly returned to her. "He made me do it."

"Do what?" Princess Bubblegum asked softly as she cradled Marceline's head. "What did they make you do?"

Marceline's mouth quivered as tears swelled in her eyes.

"He made me drink it." She whimpered. "He made me drink all of it."

Marceline hissed in pain as her broken ribs settled back into place. Her stomach was still burning, and her body felt weak. A sick feeling rose up in Princess Bubblegum as she looked at the large pool around them. It was easily three gallons worth of blood.

"I'm sorry." Marceline sobbed as she turned her back to Princess Bubblegum. "I'm sorry, I'm sorry, I'm sorry…"

Princess Bubblegum shook her head and tried to wipe the blood from Marceline's face.

"You have nothing to be sorry about. This isn't your fault." She said in a soft, comforting voice.

Marceline shook her head vigorously and pushed the princess' hands away. She was so ashamed of herself.

"Finn, I'm sorry." She sobbed. "I'm so sorry Finn. They made me do it..."

Princess Bubblegum felt a chill run through her veins. This blood wasn't just any blood. This blood was Finn's blood. But that was impossible. Humans couldn't hold this much blood in their bodies.

"Marceline, Finn is still alive." Princess Bubblegum stated as she turned the distraught vampire's head towards the opposite side of the room.

Marceline's eyes widened as they fell upon Finn's pale and bloodied form huddled on the floor.

"Finn…is alive?" she asked, confused. "But…I drank so much. How is he alive?"

"Finn is strong, we both know this." Princess Bubblegum stated. "But he has lost too much blood. I've managed to stop the bleeding but-"

Marceline abruptly pushed herself off the floor and floated unsteadily over towards Finn. She collapsed a mere foot away from Finn and started to drag herself over towards him.

"I'm sorry, Finn." She whimpered as she pulled herself up next to him. "They took so much from you."

Princess Bubblegum gasped as Marceline suddenly punched herself hard in the stomach.

"Marcy, what are you doing?!" she exclaimed as she rushed over to stop her.

Ignoring the princess, Marceline punched herself in the stomach again.

"They took so much from him." She repeated almost madly. "So, I'm going to give some back."

Marceline suddenly stuck her finger down her throat. She gagged as the remaining blood in her stomach quickly rose. She then extended her fangs and in a blur of movement sank them deep into Finn's neck.

"Marceline!?" Princess Bubblegum screamed. "What are you doing?!"

Marceline's cheeks bulged as the contents of her stomach emptied out into her mouth. Through the fresh puncture wounds on his neck, Marceline slowly pushed the blood from her mouth into Finn's neck. The blood inside of a vampire's stomach does not rot or decay, it is kept preserved and fresh. What Marceline was doing was equivalent to a blood transfusion.

Princess Bubblegum stood in awe as the color on Finn's cheeks slowly returned. She couldn't believe it. Marceline's plan was working.  
After emptying her mouth, Marceline retracted her fangs from Finn's neck. She quickly ran her tongue over the puncture wounds, coating them with an enzyme that coagulated blood. Marceline wiped her mouth and spat out what blood was still in her mouth. She looked over at the still awestruck princess and smiled feebly.

"What, did you think I was going to drain him?" she asked with a smirk.

Exhausted, Marceline propped herself up next to Finn's unconscious body and laid her head back against the wall.

"He's shivering pretty bad." Marceline stated drowsily.

Princess Bubblegum hadn't put much thought towards it, but the room was rather cold.

"We should keep him warm." Princess Bubblegum stated as she walked over to the two of them. "He won't survive if he gets sick."

Princess Bubblegum gently sat herself down on Finn's opposite side and softly pressed herself against him. Marceline smiled and did the same. Slowly, but surely, Finn's shivering lessened.

Marceline held out her hand, which Princess Bubblegum took and held tenderly.

"Do you think anyone is trying to find us?" Princess Bubblegum asked quietly.

Marceline shrugged her shoulders.

"Jake and Lady are probably looking for Finn." She said with a tired yawn. "Peppermint Butler no doubt is looking for you. I have no idea who would be looking for me or Phoebe…"

* * *

Unable to keep herself from yawning, Marceline laid her head against Finn's shoulder. Princess Bubblegum yawned, her eyelids felt so heavy.  
She knew that it was a bad idea to fall asleep in this waking nightmare, but she was just too exhausted. Finn's warmth was so inviting, and Marceline's presence was so comforting. Princess Bubblegum yawned and laid her head against Finn's shoulder as well.

Just as the three of them had finally gotten as comfortable as the stone walls and floors would allow them, there was a loud click. Out of the walls sprang several sprinklers that immediately began to spray water out into the room. Cold water rained down onto the three prisoner's heads, jolting two of them from their brief slumber. The water gradually washed the massive blood stain off the floor and down the drain in the center of the room. Now shivering themselves, Marceline and Princess Bubblegum clung to Finn for the little warmth that he could provide. Almost as suddenly as they had started, the sprinklers stopped and retreated back into the walls.

Now sopping wet, the prisoners huddled as close together as they could. The message was clear. There was to be no rest, not unless the unseen master of this house of pain allowed it.

"This place sucks." Marceline hissed through her chattering teeth.

* * *

 **Bloody enough?**


	9. Chapter 9: Cold and Dark

Chapter 9

* * *

Flame Princess' eyes snapped open as the veil of unconsciousness was suddenly lifted. The last thing she remembered was the holding room separating into four separate parts before being dropped into a howling darkness. She couldn't remember much after the drop. What she did remember was the loud grinding of gears, the hissing of pistons, and pounding of machinery. She figured that she must have blacked out from the pure shock of the drop.

Flame Princess felt an ache in her neck. Much to her dismay, she found that she still had the cursed collar locked tightly around her neck.  
Flame Princess looked down at her hands and saw that her flames were burning very low. Her normal radiant orange glow was a dull red. Such a red color meant that her internal and external temperatures were very low.

 _The collar is still working then._ Flame Princess thought bitterly as she gave the collar one futile tug.

The princess took a moment to take in her surroundings. Wherever she was, it was almost pitch black. Despite her nature, she couldn't build up enough heat to strengthen her flames enough to brighten the room.  
She jumped at the light trickling sound of water calmly flowing. She couldn't see where the water was, but she could tell that it was very close; too close.

"Hello, is anyone there?" Flame Princess asked nervously as she took a single step forward.

As she stepped forward, the princess felt a tile beneath her foot sink into the floor. Almost instantly, several dull red lights flooded the room with their eerily glow.  
Flame Princess let out a startled gasp as the lights revealed that she was standing on a walkway that couldn't be more than three feet wide. Running along the parallel sides of the walkway were two large pools of black water. The pools themselves did not appear to be that deep, but that was hardly the issue. Water of any kind was potentially deadly to Flame Princess and her people. It wasn't a matter of drowning as it was a matter of her being extinguished.

Flame Princess tore her worried gaze from the pools of water and looked forward. Standing before her was a tall, thick metal wall. The wall divided the walkway in half, blocking the rest of the walkway from the princess. From what she could tell, the wall was also hiding something behind it. Whether it was hiding the exit, or a trap remained to be seen. It became clear to the princess that the pools of water were meant to keep her from trying to go around the wall. Painted on the metal wall in red paint were the words "Feel how they felt."

* * *

Suddenly, something sprang up from out of one of the pools of water with a loud splash. Flame Princess screamed as she reared back from the water that spilled out onto the walkway. As the initial panic faded, Flame Princess' eyes locked with the cause of the disturbance. It was a small white-faced dummy with red spirals on its cheeks. Water dripped down its black suit and hair as it stared back at Flame Princess with two piercing red eyes.

 _ **"Hello Princess, welcome to your first test."**_ The dummy spoke, its slotted mouth moving up and down. _**"It is no hidden secret that you have quite a fiery temper. This temper of yours has led to a fair amount of grief for those around you. Had it not been for the actions of one of your fellow players, Finn, you would have destroyed an entire kingdom with your rage."**_

Flame Princess growled angrily and raised her hands towards the dummy. Her flames flickered but nothing came of it. The collar around her neck was doing its job all too well.

"What do you know?!" Flame Princess shouted viciously. "You know nothing about me!"

The dummy's mouth opened and closed as an eerie cackle rang out as if to mock the princess. The cackle cycled three more times before stopping.

 _ **"I know that your rage was caused by a betrayal. A betrayal from the one you once held closest to your heart. The one that you once loved."**_

Flame Princess' flames flickered out in shock before quickly reigniting.

 _How did he know that?!_ She asked herself in a panic. _I never told anyone about what Finn did to me!_

Ignoring the princess' silence, the dummy continued with its speech.

 _ **"This betrayal only worsened your distrustful nature and fueled your anger even further. This distrust has kept you alive on the throne of the Fire Kingdom, but it has slowly turned your heart cold and dark. Your anger and distrust have brought pain to those around you. It has cost you so much. Your happiness, your sleep, it has even cost you the life of your loyal lieutenant; Cinnamon bun."**_

Flame Princess felt her heart sink at the mention of her late lieutenant and close friend, Cinnamon bun. She could still see the image of his frozen form shattering as her poorly timed fireball smashed against him.

Hot tears of liquid fire ran down her cheeks as the loss of her friend bore down onto her. For the first time ever, Flame Princess felt completely alone and helpless. Her lieutenant was dead. Her kingdom was in ruins and was no doubt already scrambling to find her replacement. There was still Finn, Princess Bubblegum, and Marceline. But she didn't trust them enough to hope from their help.

"Please…let me go." Flame Princess whimpered, her hope gone. "I'm sorry…I'm so sorry."

The dummy was silent. Its red and black eyes stared hard at the princess.

 _ **"I could let you go."**_ The dummy spoke. _**"But that wouldn't serve you."**_

* * *

The sound of grinding metal on stone echoed out across the room as the metal wall was slowly raised. Behind the wall was a large metal rectangular tunnel that sat over the walkway. The inside of the tunnel was lined with metal hinges that held inward facing curved blades made of the coldest ice. Each side of the tunnel had eight blades, sixteen in total, spaced apart just enough that the blades interlocked like teeth. Behind the blades hung several metal chains that were dripping with ice cold water. On the opposite end of the tunnel was another set of blades, bringing the number of blades to a total of thirty-two. To make things even worse, the floor of the tunnel was covered in ice.

Flame Princess stared in awestruck silence at the terrifying design of the object that stood before her. Deep down, she knew that this had been made specifically for her and her alone.

"W-what is that?" she stammered in fear.

 _ **"It is your path to freedom."**_ The dummy spoke. _**"Your anger has brought pain to those around you and has turned your heart into a cold and dark place. Today, we're bringing the cold and darkness of your heart out into the open. Now in order for you to stay alive, you have to match your body with the cold and darkness of your heart."**_

Several more lights shown to life to reveal the unseen terror that had been looming over Flame Princess' head since she awoken. The ceiling was made of glass, and behind that glass was a lake's worth of pitch-black water. Flame Princess spotted several teddy bears taped to glass jars filled with nails and black powder wired across the ceiling. With a snap of electricity, a large timer flashed to life on the opposite end of the walkway.

 _ **"The ceiling above you is holding back**_ _ **six hundred thousand gallons of water. More than enough to fill this room and extinguish you permanently. The timer on the opposite side of the room is connected to the explosives on the ceiling. In sixty seconds, the timer will trigger the explosives. The game is simple. Reach the timer before it runs down and stop the explosives. Or, do nothing and let the timer trigger the explosives and drown."**_

Flame Princess shook in fear and her flames flickered weakly. This was no idle threat. This had been made for her. To make her hurt, and to make her suffer.

 _ **"Live or die. Make your choice."**_

With that said, the dummy was quickly pulled back under the black pool of water.

* * *

Flame Princess' eyes darted in every direction as her mind raced. The loud ticking of the timer did nothing to ease her mind. If anything, it only made her panic even further. Tears of liquid fire ran down her face as she cried. She was terrified beyond words, beyond rational thought. This place was going to be her tomb and she knew it.

"No." She stated coldly. "No, no, no!"

Flame Princess drew her hand back and slapped herself across the face.

"I am not some scared child!" she exclaimed firmly. "I am the ruler of the Fire Kingdom! I will not let you win!"

Steeling herself, Flame Princess quickly approached the icy bladed tunnel. The air around the tunnel was so cold that it hurt. Her eyes quickly glanced over the blades of ice. Had it not been for the cursed collar on her neck, she would have easily been able to incinerate the device. Time was running out, and Flame Princess could waste any of it hesitating.

Flame Princess took a deep breath and placed her hands against the blades. It was now or never. There was no running away. It was live or die, and she wanted to live.

"For my kingdom!" Flame Princess shouted as she pressed her hands against the blades.

Steam hiss loudly as skin touched the ice blades. She bit down on her bottom lip as she applied more force against the blades.  
The hinges that held the blades squeaked as they slowly moved. But just as soon as it looked like she had been making some progress, the blades sprang back against her and threw her to the floor.

Shivering and in pain, Flame Princess quickly pushed herself off the floor. After taking a second to rekindle her flames, the princess was ready to step up her game.

"I need more force." She stated as she took a few steps away from the tunnel.

Once she was far enough away, Flame Princess let out a loud war cry and charged at the bladed entrance of the tunnel. With a loud hiss of steam and the sound of twisting metal, Flame Princess shoved herself past the blades and into the tunnel. Liquid heat gushed from her body as the ice blades cut deeply into her. Her feet seared in pain as they met the ice on the floor. Losing her footing and momentum, Flame Princess fell to the floor. She screamed in agony as her body seared against the ice. Her body was covered in deep wounds that would not heal without something to rekindle her flames.

Freezing, and agonized, Flame Princess scrambled to her feet as best as she could. Reaching out blindly, she grabbed tightly onto one of the many water-soaked chains that hung from the ceiling of the tunnel. With another scream of pain, the princess yanked herself upright. Her legs were trembling from the cold and the sheer amount of pain that she was in. She could feel the heat bleeding out of her body as she forced herself to march forward.

"I'm sorry." She cried as she walked onward, wincing as several of the chains dragged against her back. "I'm so sorry."

Steam was filling the tunnel as the Flame Princess bled more and more heat out of her body. Each step she took sent waves of pain tearing through her body. The ever-present ticking of the timer filled her mind with dread. She was running out of time!

After what felt like an eternity, Flame Princess made it to the last set of blades. Behind the blades was the button that stopped the timer. Her mind was a storm of pain and emotions. She couldn't think straight anymore. She simply quickened her pace and prayed that she wouldn't lose her balance. A small whimper escaped her mouth that quickly grew into another loud war cry as she charged the last set of blades.

Liquid heat gushed out of her body as she forced herself through the blades. With only five seconds left on the timer, Flame Princess limped as fast as she could. She screamed and leaped forward and slammed her hand down onto the button. With only one second left on the timer, Flame Princess had stopped the timer from triggering the explosives.

She had survived.

She had won.

"I'm sorry…" she shivered as she stood uneasily, waiting for whatever was to come next.

The metal pedestal that the button sat on suddenly sank back into the floor. There was a hiss followed by a bright light as a door slide open on the wall in front of her. Clinging to her shoulders for warmth, Flame Princess limped into the light and out of the darkness.

* * *

The sound of a door sliding open startled Marceline and Princess Bubblegum. They both let out horrified gasps once they saw the low burning and badly wounded Flame Princess limp out of the darkness and collapse onto the floor of the holding room.

"Oh, my glob, Phoebe?!" Marceline exclaimed as she quickly flew over towards the smoldering princess.

"What did they do to you?!" Princess Bubblegum gasped in horror as she saw the deep wounds that covered Flame Princess' body.

Flame Princess' eyes were glassy, and her body was motionless. The heat that was bleeding out of Flame Princess' body filled the room with a thick steam, making it very hard for a certain adventurer to breathe.

With a startled gasp, Finn jolted awake and sprang to his feet. His legs wobbled before he fell onto his knee. Ignoring the pain that pulsed through his body, Finn quickly stood himself up and looked over towards the huddled group.

"PB, Marcy?" Finn asked as he shook the fog from his eyes. "What happened?"

Finn's question went unanswered. His eyes widened in horror as they fell upon the shredded and smoldering figure of Flame Princess.  
He quickly rushed over to the group and keeled down beside Flame Princess. Ignoring the burns that he would receive, Finn slid his hands underneath the princess, and he held her upper body off of the floor.

"What happened to her?!" Finn shouted as his eyes darted between Princess Bubblegum and Marceline's equally as frightened faces.

Finn's blood started to boil. This wasn't part of the rules, or at least as he understood them.

"Is this part of your game?!" Finn shouted angrily. "She chose to live! She chose to live!"

* * *

Suddenly, a door slid open and out of the darkness lumbered one of the masked figures. Princess Bubblegum recognized the figure as the one that was responsible for kidnapping her. The rotting, maggot filled pig mask and giant stature made it stand out against the other figures.

The figure stomped its way into the center of the room and stopped. Without warning, three spindly metallic arms jutted out from the sleeve of the figure. Two of the arms snapped forward, and penned Finn and Princess Bubblegum to the wall by their necks with man-catcher like vices. The third arm only sprang forward once Marceline decided to attack. Attached to the end of the third arm was a silver crucifix. Marceline hissed as she pushed herself against the wall as she tried to get as far away from the crucifix as possible.

The figure snorted and approached the motionless Flame Princess. The figure cocked its head to the side as it curiously looked down at the princess. The figure then nudged her with its foot.

"Don't you touch her!" Finn snarled furiously as he struggled against the metal chokehold. "Don't you dare touch her!"

The figure ignored the adventurer's threats. With a snort, the figure withdrew a bottle of lighter fluid and poured it onto Flame Princess. With a flash of heat and fire, Flame Princess' body began to burn again. With a steady flame, her wounds could now heal on their own.

The figure snorted and retracted the metal arms back into its sleeve with a subtle clicking and whirring. Finn rushed over towards Flame Princess while Marceline and Princess Bubblegum stayed still.

"You-you saved her?" Princess Bubblegum asked, both confused and frightened. "But why?"

"Because they aren't done with us yet." Marceline hissed as she tried to gather herself. "Isn't that right, piggy?"

The figure didn't even acknowledge that Marceline had spoken as they stomped out of the room back into the darkness. With a familiar hiss, the door slid shut behind the figure, leaving the four alone to lick their wounds.

* * *

Flame Princess winched as her wounds slowly sealed shut. Her eyes opened as her strength gradually returned to her.

"Finn, PB, Marceline…you all survived?" she asked weakly as she tried to set herself upright. She felt the tingle of Finn's robotic arm on her back as he held her upright.

"I've got you, princess." Finn stated softly. "Don't worry."

Flame Princess let out a small gasp as her eyes fell on Finn's badly wounded arm. Her eyes slowly looked over Princess Bubblegum's cut and bruised mouth and Marceline's various puncture wounds. Fresh hot tears swelled in her eyes.

"It's my fault! "she sobbed as the full weight of the trauma came crashing down on her. "It's all my fault!"

Marceline took the distraught princess out of Finn's hands and held her.

"Shhh…don't say that." Marceline assured Flame Princess in a calming voice. "This isn't your fault."

Flame Princess cried even harder as she buried her head into Marceline shoulder.

"But…I killed him." She whimpered so quietly that it almost went unheard.

A look of concern spread across Marceline's face. Had she heard her correctly?

"You…you killed who?" Marceline asked as calmly as she could, shooting concerned and nervous glances at Finn and PB.

Flame Princess took a deep breath and tensed her body as if expecting a painful blow.

"Cinnamon bun." She whimpered weakly. "I killed Cinnamon bun."

* * *

Silence fell over the group. After a moment of uncomfortable silence, Flame Princess stopped her sobbing and pushed herself away from Marceline.

"What do you mean you killed Cinnamon bun?" Princess Bubblegum asked with a hint of anger in her voice. "What happened? What did you do?!"

Flame Princess sighed and curled herself up on the floor as she recalled the events of the previous night.

"When the walking cloud or whatever it was attacked the Fire Kingdom, a magic user was sent to apprehend me." She explained as calmly as she could. "In the ensuing fight, Cinnamon bun and several of my guards rushed into my chambers to help me. They were frozen solid almost instantly."

Flame Princess began to tremble as the pain of what she had done began to rise to the surface again.

"I was just so angry." She rasped as she dug her fingers into the tattered remains of her nightgown. "I threw a fireball at the attacker and they dodged it. But Cinnamon bun…the fireball shattered him…"

The other three all gave each other worried glances. None were certain how to proceed. It was all too much to take in.

"Phoebe, that wasn't your fault." Finn stated in a calm tone. "If the magic user hadn't frozen him, Cinnamon bun wouldn't have-"

"Finn, please stop." Flame Princess begged. "I...I can't do this right now."

With nothing more that could be said, Finn slumped sadly to the floor.

* * *

Marceline was silent as she ran through what she knew about the situation over in her head. All four of them had been kidnapped by pig-masked assailants.  
All four were being accused of something that, while not necessarily virtuous, were not worth the punishments they had received.  
The creepy dummy with the red spiraled cheeks. Calling the traps and devices part of a "game," or test.

This was beginning to sound frighteningly familiar to her. But why was it familiar? What was the last piece of the puzzle that she was missing?

 _Puzzle…puzzle piece…pieces of a puzzle._

Marceline's face suddenly grew even paler as an old, almost forgotten memory burned in the front of her brain.

"Oh…my…glob…" she rasped in a shocked, shaky voice. "I know who is behind this."

Everyone in the group snapped to attention and circled around her.

"You do, really?" Finn asked. "Tell us!"

"Yes, please tell us." PB begged.

"Who is it?" Phoebe asked.

Marceline swallowed the lump in her throat and let out a hiss to calm herself.

"Long before the mushroom-war, there was a killer." She stated as she sat herself on the floor. "The killer would kidnap people that they thought didn't appreciate the life they had been given, or something like that. They would set up all these crazy torture devices and force their victims to math themselves up in order to free themselves. If they didn't, the traps would kill them."

Marceline laid her back against the floor. She couldn't believe what she was even saying. There was no way that she was right.

"So…what happened to them?" Finn asked, the suspense killing him.

Marceline shook her head and shut her eyes.

"They died…plain and simple." She stated. "But the killings continued up until the start of the mushroom-war. That is when they unofficially stopped, along with, you know, the rest of the world. But…now it looks like they might be back from the dead."

Princess Bubblegum took Marceline's hand and held it gently, calming her.

"Who was this killer?" she asked. "Perhaps I've read about them somewhere."

Marceline shook her head ran her fingers through her black hair.

"Doubt it, PB." She responded. "Most knowledge of their crimes would have been lost in the mushroom-war. Anything that survived is probably nothing but dust by now.

Marceline groaned as exhaustion weighted on her body.

"I don't remember the killer's real name anymore. But I do remember the name they were given."

Marceline couldn't believe what she was about to say. None of it made any sense. None of it should have been possible. But stranger things had happened before in Ooo.

"They called the killer, Jigsaw." Marceline hissed in a low whisper, as if the name was cursed.

* * *

The earsplitting crackle of the loud speaker blared to life, jarring the four terribly.

 _ **"Congratulations, you have survived your first round of tests."**_ The familiar voice spoke darkly. _**"You have proven that you are willing and capable of continuing down the path towards your rehabilitation. You are all one step closer towards facing your sins and earning your freedom. It would be wise of you to use this time to rest while you can. The games have only just begun."**_

* * *

Suddenly, the lights in the room all shut off, leaving them all in darkness. Flame Princess' body gave off a warm glow, that the others quickly huddled around.  
She was their only source of light in the howling darkness.

"Everyone, huddle together." Marceline ordered in a firm voice. "We can't let anyone get separated."

None of them wanted to sleep, not after what they had been through. Not after what Marceline had told them. Each one was afraid that should they close their eyes, that they might never wake again. But slowly and surely their exhaustion began to wear them down.

Flame Princess yawned and rested her head against Finn's shoulder, nodding off almost immediately. Finn fought to stay awake but slowly nodded off, resting his head against Phoebe's head, completely ignorant to the shocking detail that her body was somehow not burning him.

"Get some sleep, PB." Marceline stated quietly. "I'll take the first watch."

Princess Bubblegum couldn't even stay awake long enough to respond and she nestled her head against Marceline's shoulder.

Marceline smiled as she looked over the sleeping forms of her closest friends. They needed the rest more than she did.

"Sleep tight, don't let the bed bugs bight." Whispered softly.

With that said, Marceline turned her keen eyes back out towards the darkness and watched for anything that might be lurking in the shadows.

* * *

The harsh light of a computer monitor filled the dark room with an eerie glow. On the screen, the four captives were seen all huddled together. Long, talon-like nails tapped against the keyboard, changing the video feed to that of an earlier recording. The recording was of Flame Princess' test. A cold, chilling smile spread across the viewer's face at the sight of the young princess' agony. The viewer's smile quickly turned into a scowl as the door slid open as two figures entered the room. The first figure was the one with the metal arm. The second figure was the giant with the rotten pig mask.

"I know you altered the device." The first figure stated accusingly. "You changed the tension level on the hinges to make it even harder to force them open."

The viewer spun around on the chair and faced the two unwanted visitors with a frown.

"Oh, please, Jigsaw saw me fit to oversee that little whelps' tests." The viewer spoke with a cold tone. "Besides, she needed to prove herself to us. The little whelp has been given everything she ever wanted. She had her own kingdom, and yet she didn't appreciate it. I needed to see what she was willing to do for her kingdom."

With the press of a button, the recording was replayed again, this time at a different angle, one that captured the moment Flame Princess threw herself through the ice blades perfectly.

A low growl rumbled from the third figure as it watched the recording.

"Yeah, you said it, big guy. She is twisted." The second figure stated bitterly.

"Let's get one thing clear, little bunny," the viewer hissed venomously as she rose out of her chair in a challenging manner. "I know you want to see them suffer just as much as I do. You simply lack the honesty!"

The crackle of an intercom speaker brought a sudden silence to the three figures.

 _ **"Do you like how brutality feels, Simone?"**_

The viewer swallowed nervously before responding.

"You know it's not like that, Jigsaw, sir." Simone responded quietly. "I just thought that-"

 _ **"Check with me next time you decide to make your last-minute changes."**_ The voice spoke again, cutting Simone off.

"Yes, Jigsaw…I apologize." Simone responded quietly as she bowed her head.

 _ **"The rest of you, return to your posts. There is work to be done."**_

"Yes sir. Come on, big guy. Let's leave the queen in the cold." The second figure said with a smirk as they tapped the third figure's side.

With a snort, the third figure stomped out of the room, following the second figure. With a hiss, the door slid shut behind them.

* * *

Simone stood alone in the dark observation room. She was trembling with rage. She had been made a fool of in front of her master!

"How dare that little bitch!" Simone shrieked as she slammed her fists down onto the keyboard, encasing it in a thick block of ice. "Calling me twisted after the things she has done! After what I sacrificed to regain my life?!"

A small speaker on the computer chirped to life, startling Simone.

 _ **"We can never come from anger, or from vengeance. I trust that you will remember that."**_

Jigsaw's words felt calming this time rather than berating. He was speaking to her personally, with no one else listening. Simone uncurled her fists and dispersed her magic.

"Yes, Jigsaw." She responded, her voice calm and even. "I'll remember."

 _ **"Continue your work. The games have only just begun."**_

A wide smile spread across Simone's face as she pulled her pig mask over her head. Frost quickly spread across the floor and over the monitors as she let out a deep content sigh.

"With pleasure, Jigsaw."

* * *

 **And Jigsaw's first name drop!**

 **This was a fun and challenging chapter to type.**

 **How does one torture fire?** **With lots of ice, water and emotional trauma!**

 **I hope you all are enjoying the ride so far. I know I am!**


	10. Chapter 10: What Happened Last Night?

Chapter 10

* * *

The sun rose slowly over the horizon, bathing the slumbering land of Ooo with its warming light. Birds began to sing and chirp as if to welcome the new day. With the promise of a new day, the land of Ooo slowly began to wake from their slumber. A soft breeze blew across the land, bringing with it the pleasing scent of the early morning air. All in all, it was the beginning of yet another day in the land of Ooo.

* * *

A flash of bright colors streaked across the sky as Lady Rainicorn gracefully flew above the clouds. Jake laughed as she dove beneath the clouds and skimmed the tree line of the forest that surrounded the tree fort. He had spent the entire night battling a goblin that had fortified itself in Lady's attic.

"Oh man, I can't wait to show Finn all this cool stuff that goblin had stashed away!" Jake exclaimed happily as he looked over his shoulder at the loot filled backpack. "I can't believe he managed too fit all of this stuff in your attic."

 _"I've been meaning to declutter for a while."_ Lady giggled. _"Thanks to you, I won't have to now."_

"Anything for my babe!" Jake laughed before planting a kiss on Lady's neck.

Despite the fun he had, Jake was really hoping that something from his bag of loot would cheer his brother up. It pained him to see Finn in the dumps. He didn't know what had caused Finn to wander into the funk that he was stuck in, but he was determined to pull him out of it. He had something planned for his brother that was certain to brighten his mood.

"Today we are gonna grab Finn and take him on a good old fashion adventure!" Jake proclaimed loudly. "With dungeons and trolls and a whole bunch of other crazy stuff! That ought to cheer him up for sure!"

* * *

Lady swiftly descended as the tree fort came into view. She gracefully spiraled before landing on the ground. Jake hopped off Lady's back and gave her a kiss on the snout.

"I'll be right back, babe. I'll go grab Finn and then we can head to Candy Kingdom and check up on Princess Bubblegum."

 _"I'm in no hurry."_ Lady responded sweetly. _"Take as long as you need."_

"Love you, babe!" Jake hollered as he climbed up the tree fort ladder.

 _"Love you more!"_ Lady sang back.

Jake pushed open the hatch to the tree fort and tossed his bag of loot into the entry room.

"I'm home, Finn!" Jake shouted as he hopped off the ladder and into the room. "Come check out this stuff I got from that goblin that was in Lady's attic!"

Jake arrival was met with silence. Figuring that Finn was still asleep, Jake took a deep lung full of air.

"Yo, Finn! Wake up! I got loot to show you!" Jake shouted so loudly that it rattled the windows.

Again, he was met with silence.

 _"Is everything alright in there?"_ Lady asked as she peered in through the window.

Jake looked to Lady with a confused expression.

"I'm not sure." He stated as he began to stretch his way into the living room. "There is no way he didn't hear me."

Jake stretched into the living room and looked around.

"You in here, Finn?" Jake asked as he stretched into the kitchen. "Not in there either."

Jake's body twisted as he stretched up into their bedroom.

"You napping in here?!" Jake shouted playfully as he entered the bedroom, only to find it empty.

"Hmm… where is he?" Jake asked himself as he rubbed his chin in thought. "He told me that he wasn't going anywhere last night."

There was a loud thud, as the closet door was suddenly flung open. Jake shouted shrilly before realizing that the cause of the noise was only BMO. The small robot was bound in tightly wrapped rope and had tape covering their mouth. There was a large crack on BMO's screen where it looked like something had hit the poor robot hard on the face.

"Woah, BMO, what happened to you?!" Jake asked as he tore the tape off the struggling robot.

As the tape was pulled from BMO's mouth, a small cassette tape fell to the floor.

"Jake, Lady, Finn is in big trouble!" BMO exclaimed as they sprang up off the floor. "So much trouble! Very, very, very big trouble!"

"Woah, slow down BMO." Jake ordered as he tried to calm the frightened robot. "What do you mean Finn is in trouble? What happened while I was gone?"

BMO groaned as they rubbed the crack on their screen.

"I was looking for something to cheer Finn up." BMO stated as they wobbled uneasily. "I was in the closet when-"

BMO's screen suddenly snapped to static before returning to normal.

"ERROR. MEMORY CORRUPTED." BMO announced robotically. "-then I woke up in the closet all tied up! Then I heard Finn shout, but then everything was quiet. I've been trapped in the closet all night!"

 _"Finn is missing?"_ Lady asked with a worried expression. _"Is he in danger?"_

As Jake turned to look back down at BMO, he spotted the cassette that had fallen but had gone unnoticed. He picked it up and held it up to the light. Written on the tape were the words 'Play Me,' written in red. Jake held the tape under his noise and gave it a sniff. He could smell dirt, oil, something that smelled like a pig, and he could smell Finn's scent. But something was off about the scent.

"I can smell Finn on this tape, but something is weird." Jake stated as he gave it another sniff. "There are two scents that I'm smelling." He paused as he took another sniff. "One is defiantly Finn's, but the other smells like Finn but more…girly?"

 _"Girly?"_ Lady asked. _"What do you mean?"_

"I'm not really sure, babe." Jake admitted "My nose is telling me that there were two Finns here last night. But that's major impossible."

Jake then held the tape up to BMO.

"Can you play it, BMO?" Jake asked. "Maybe we can find something out on the tape."

BMO was hesitant, but they quickly found the courage and grabbed the tape from Jake and placed it in their tape player slot.

BMO's screen flickered as the tape began to play. The formatting on the tape was old, but BMO's programing quickly made the tape playable. BMO's screen suddenly flashed white and their speakers blared with a loud crackle of static, startling Jake and Lady greatly. As suddenly as it started, the static snapped to the image of a white-faced dummy with red spirals on its cheeks.

"What the glob?" Jake asked in a deathly quiet voice.

Slowly, the dummy's head turned towards the camera, its red eyes glaring at its audience.

" _ **Hello, Jake. By the time you watch this tape, your brother Finn will already be in my possession. Your brother is very sick. I'm sure you have noticed the apathy, the lethargy, and the emptiness. He hasn't always been like this, we both know as much. Your brother has taken his life for granted and has found himself wandering down a dark path. A path of ruin. Please be aware that none of this is your fault. But know this; and you cannot save him. Only he can save himself. Should your brother survive my games, then he will return completely rehabilitated. Hidden inside the coding of your robotic friend here is a program of my creation. This tape contained a line of code that only my program can find and store. This line code is the first piece of the puzzle. There are four puzzle pieces in total. Find the remaining pieces to the puzzle and assemble them together. Once this task is complete, you will be one step closer to finding your brother. Whether you find him alive or dead is up to him. Whatever you decide is inconsequential. Finn's game will continue, with or without you pursuing me. You cannot stop what I have started. You cannot stop the game."**_

BMO's screen suddenly cut to static before going blank. There was a loud whirring noise as ribbons of the cassette tape spilled out from BMO's tape player slot. BMO's body shuttered before ejecting the ruined tape. BMO's screen flickered before changing back to their default face screen.

"I'm sorry Jake." The robot apologized. "It wasn't my fault. It was the virus from the tape. It made me do it!"

Lady scooped the sobbing robot up and cradled them, calming them down.

Jake was silent as he tried to process all the information that had just been dumped on him. He didn't understand how Finn's recent bout of depression led to his kidnapping, or how it motivated the kidnapper. To be honest, Jake didn't care about the why or the how. All knew was that his bro was in danger, and he had to go save him. But he was going to need help in finding him.

Jake picked up the shredded remains of the cassette tape and pocketed it before jumping up on Lady's back.

"Come on, babe. Let's go see Princess Bubblegum." Jake said with a determined voice as he grabbed BMO and placed them in a pouch he formed in his stomach. "If there is one person in Ooo that can solve a puzzle, it's PB."

 _"I agree, Jake."_ Lady responded as she coiled herself up like a spring. _"Hold on tightly!"_

With a flash bright colors, Lady rocketed out the tree fort and into the sky.

* * *

The clouds blurred past the trio as Lady Rainicorn flew as fast as she could towards the Candy Kingdom. While trying to keep themselves calm, BMO's eyes wandered down to the grasslands below them. The little robot noticed a trial of deep gashes in the ground.

"Hey, look down there!" BMO exclaimed as they pointed.

Jake and Lady were stunned as their eyes fell upon the gashes that marred the grasslands. The gashes were easily one-hundred feet wide.

"Woah, those weren't there yesterday!" Jake exclaimed. "What the heck are they?!"

 _"I don't know, but they are headed towards the Candy Kingdom!"_ Lady responded as she dove closer towards the ground and flew parallel to the gashes. _"I don't like this Jake. Why would they be heading towards the Candy Kingdom?"_

"I guess we'll find out once we get there." Jake responded as he clung to Lady tightly. "Kick it into high gear, babe! Something ain't right!"

Lady reared back, then sprang forward as she bolted as fast as she could towards the Candy Kingdom, anxious at what they might find waiting for them.

* * *

After flying for what felt like forever, the trio finally made it to the Candy Kingdom. The deep gashes in the ground they had spotted earlier had stopped and changed their course a mile outside of the kingdom. The trio would investigate where they lead to later. Right now, they needed to see the princess.

There was a somber air that filled the Candy Kingdom and its people. The Gumball guardians were weeping.

"I've got a bad feeling about this." Jake stated nervously.

Lady slowed her flying speed and coiled down towards Princess Bubblegum's tower. As the three entered through the open balcony window, they were greeted by several of the Banana guards.

"Halt, who goes- oh it's Lady and Sir Jake." One of the guards stated as he lowered his spear. "It's good to see you."

"What's goin' on around here?" Jake asked as he looked around at all of the security that was scouring PB's personal chambers with magnifying glasses. "Where is Princess Bubblegum?"

"Oh, glob, the princess!" one of the guards wailed before falling to floor sobbing. "The Princess has been kidnapped!"

"What?!" Both Jake and Lady exclaimed.

 _"How did she get kidnapped?"_ Lady asked in a fearful tone. _"Wouldn't the Gumball guardians be able to sense the kidnapper's presence before they could even enter the kingdom?"_

"Yeah, what about that?" Jake asked. "How could someone get past the guardians? Where is Peppermint Butler? He should know how that junk works."

The Banana guards all shot each other frightened looks.

"Peppermint Butler is missing as well!" one of the guards shouted, unable to bear keeping silent.

Jake could not believe what he was hearing. Not only was his brother missing, but now so was Princess Bubblegum and Peppermint Butler.

 _Could this day get any worse?_ He asked himself.

* * *

"Well, look it is!" an obnoxious voice shouted. "Jake and Lady. Haven't seen yous guys in a while."

Jake turned towards the open door of the chamber and spotted the tiny flambit, Flambo.

"Hey Flambo." Jake greeted wearily. "It has been a while. What are you doing here?"

"Oh, I just dropped on by to ask the princess for emergency aid for the Fire Kingdom." Flambo answered casually. "The whole place got wrecked up bad last night. Yep, I saw the whole thing go down. Big walkin' cloud lookin' thing just waltzed on up to the castle and started smashin' it up. Awful, truly awful. Oh, and Flame Princess is missin'."

A huge vein bulged in Jake's head at this new and very unwanted development.

"Are you telling me that Flame Princess has been kidnapped too?" Jake asked, really hoping that he misheard the flambit.

"Probably, didn't see that go down. Alls I saw was the walkin' cloud thing attack the palace then it just up and left." Flambo answered. "By the time I made it to the palace, the princess was missin' and whoever was left were arguin' about who should replace her. Typical royalty, no loyalty in that bunch."

"So, I was not the only one who saw the cloud." A new voice stated bluntly, startling everyone in the room. Sitting on the window sill like she had always been there was none other than Huntress Wizard.

"Glob, I wish you wouldn't do that!" Jake exclaimed as he clutched his pounding heart. "What are you doing here?"

Huntress Wizard leaped from the window and landed in the center of the room.

"While I was out hunting last night, something tore through my forest. Something massive and concealed beneath a black cloud. I've been tracking it all night. But it somehow has managed to elude me." She spoke in a calm yet frustrated voice. "I followed it from a distance, but it led me to the home of one of your friends. The night dweller you call Marceline."

"Wait, the cloud led you to Marcy's place?" Jake asked. "Have you seen her? Is she safe?"

Huntress unslung her hunting bag and reached inside. She then threw the tattered remains of Marceline's grey t-shirt.

"I'm afraid that your friend is in danger." She stated calmly. "She fell prey to several skilled hunters. I witnessed it, but remained hidden."

 _"You saw Marcy in danger but you didn't try to help her?"_ Lady asked angrily.

"It was not my hunt, nor did I have the right to deny the hunter's their catch." Huntress answered in a very serious tone. "The hunt is between the hunter and their prey."

Huntress Wizard then reached into her bag and withdrew a badly damaged pig mask. She had snagged it from one of the hunters before they could get too far away. The hunters escaped, but she had all that she needed.

"The hunters all donned masks such as this one." She stated as she tossed it to Jake. "Their scent is now mine to follow."

Jake held the mask up to his nose and sniffed it. He gagged as the mask's stench stung his nose. It was the same pig smell that he picked up at the tree fort.

"Oh yeah, that's ripe." Jake groaned as he tossed the mask back to Huntress. "These were definitely the same guys that nabbed Finn last night."

Huntress Wizard suddenly perked up at the sound of Finn's name.

"Something has happened to Finn?" she asked with great alarm. "Is he safe? Is he hurt?"

Jake shook his head and withdrew the ruined cassette tape.

"Finn was kidnapped last night." Jake stated somberly. "The kidnappers left us this tape pretty much telling us that we can't save him. But-"

Huntress Wizard reached into her bag and withdrew a similar tape and tossed it to Jake.

"I found this in Marceline's home last night after the hunters had left." She stated with a sense of urgency that was unlike her. "Will it help lead us to Finn?"

"Oh, yeah, I found one of those old tapes too." Flambo announced as he tossed a similar cassette tape that was covered in runes of fire protection. "I was gonna sell the thing, but yous guys seem to need it more."

"Uh, we found one too." One of the Banana guards announced as they held the tape up.

 _"That's a total of four tapes."_ Lady stated with an anxious tone. _"Just like our tape said there would be."_

Jake nodded his head. Whoever kidnapped Finn, PB, Marcy, and Phoebe had been planning this for a while. But they saw fit to leave clues behind for them to find. Why? What was the reasoning behind it? Did they want to be found out, or was it really nothing more than a game to them?

"Alright, BMO, you up for this?" Jake asked the robot.

BMO nodded their head and gathered the tapes in their arms.

"I will do whatever I can to help find our friends!" the robot stated firmly.

BMO took the tapes and placed the first one in their tape player slot. Much like before, their screen flickered and went black. Their screen flickered back to life as they ejected the cassette.

"One down." BMO stated as they picked up the second tape. "Two more to go."

* * *

Each of the following tapes took longer to process as the aged technology strained the tiny robot's hardware. After about thirty minutes, the last tape was finished being processed. BMO ejected the tape and laid on their back.

"I don't feel so good." They groaned as their screen flickered and their speakers crackled.

Suddenly, BMO's screen flickered to white and their speakers blared loudly. Just as it had before, the image of the white-faced dummy appeared on BMO's screen. The room watched with bated breath as the dummy's head turned towards the viewer.

 _ **"Congratulations, you have found all the pieces to the puzzle that I left for you. You are now one step closer to finding your friends. Are you prepared to find them, in whatever state they are in once you find them? If they have the piece to their own puzzle, then you will find them rehabilitated and more appreciative of the life they have been given. However, if they lack the piece, then you will only find their bodies.**_

BMO's screen flickered to a still image of Finn, Princess Bubblegum, Marceline, and Flame Princess all huddled together in a dark empty room.

"Finn!" Both Jake and Huntress exclaimed at the sight of Finn's huddled form.

"Your hide is mine!" Huntress growled angrily as she picked up BMO and held the screen up to her face. Jake quickly pulled BMO from her hands and placed them back on the floor for all to see. BMO's screen flickered and changed back to the dummy's face.

 _ **"As I said before, you cannot save them. Only they can save themselves.**_

The image on the screen suddenly changed to an image of an old pre-mushroom war building with red jittering text that read "Four walls build a home," placed over the image. Almost as quickly as it had been shown, the screen flickered back to the dummy.

 _ **"Did you catch all of that? Search the ruins of the old world. You will find that the dead are not as quiet as you would think. Find this building, and you will find the next piece of the puzzle and you will be one step closer to finding your friends. If you follow the clues that I have left you, you will be able to see how I heal the sickness of the soul. Or you can abandon your pursuit of me, and let the game continue unhindered. The choice is yours."**_

With a loud pop, BMO's screen flickered off. The tiny robot was still for a moment before their screen blinked back to life.

"Oww…my insides hurt." BMO moaned. "I need a nap."

* * *

The room was silent as everyone mulled over what they had been shown. They now knew without a doubt that their friends were in grave danger. They knew that they needed to find their friends before it was too late.

"Did anyone catch the image of the building?" Jake asked as he looked over the group. "'Four walls build a home,' is as much as I could take in."

"I got nothin'." Flambo announced.

"I don't hunt in the ruins enough to know the territory." Huntress stated bitterly. "But the hunt will go on."

 _"Sorry, Jake. It went by too fast."_ Lady responded sadly.

"Four walls build a home." A new voice spoke from behind the group. Standing in the doorway of the princess' chambers was the last person they would expect to see; Peace Master.

"Four walls build a home." He repeated as he lifted the tip of his hat. "That is what the message said, correct?"

"Yeah…but what does that mean?" Jake asked, uneasily.

Peace Master walked past the Banana guards and withdrew a map from his charm sack.

"I've been mapping out the ruins of the old world ever since this kingdom turned its back on me and my family." He stated coldly. "If I am not allowed to fight evil in my own home, then I will fight it in the dead places, where few people dare to tread."

The map that he showed them was relatively detailed and covered at least a one-hundred-mile radius of the ruins.

"Here, this is the building that you seek." Peace Master stated as he pointed it out on the map. "It's about a two-day's journey, even by air. You will need someone who knows the territory. The ruins are a dark and treacherous place."

"Are you saying your coming with us?" Jake asked astonished. "Why, you know that Peppermint Butler was kidnapped too, right?"

Peace Master frowned bitterly and tugged on his bandages.

"I'm not doing this for him." He spat venomously. "I'm doing it because a great evil is afoot, and I can't sit idly by and let it do as it wishes."

"It makes no difference to me." Huntress stated firmly. "I'll hunt down these kidnappers, with or without anyone's help."

 _"You won't be without help, because I'm coming along too."_ Lady stated proudly as she coiled herself around Jake.

"You do you, girl." Flambo responded casually as he walked past the guards and out the door. "I ain't gettin' roped in to all this. Yous guys have fun though. Say hi to Phoebe for me, if she ain't snuffed out by the time to see her."

Jake took a moment to collect himself before looking back up towards the group.

"Alright, listen up." Jake ordered firmly. "Our friends are in trouble, and we are gonna go save them. We are all in this together now. Got that?"

 _"Agreed."_

"As you say."

"The hunt begins…"

"Good, now everyone, go grab your stuff. We will meet back here tomorrow morning. We're gonna be gone for a while, so pack for the long haul."

Jake put his hand out in front of him and smiled.

"Come on, bring it in."

Lady giggled and placed her paw on top of his. Peace Master rolled his eye before placing his hand in the circle. Huntress Wizard gave the three of them a skeptical look, but finally placed her hand in the circle as well.

"One, two, three, GO TEAM RESCUE FRIENDS!" Jake shouted excitedly as he threw his hands up in the air.

 _"Go team rescue friends!"_ Lady giggled happily as she threw her paws up in the air.

 **"** Hmm…go team." Peace Master muttered as he pulled his hand out of the circle.

"Tomorrow, I'll be here at first light." Huntress Wizard stated flatly. "Be ready."

Huntress then bolted for the window and dove off the ledge.

Jake smiled and picked up the still sleeping BMO.

"Let's go, babe." He stated as he climbed up on Lady's back.

"We got packing to do."

The room was filled with the cheers of the banana guard as Jake and Lady set out to prepare for their quest. Once again, hope was slowly restored.

* * *

The masked figure hummed softly to themselves as they measured the dimensions of the room that they were in.

"Five steps forward, then two steps left. Dead end here. Three steps right, then four steps forward." The figure muttered to themselves as they jotted down numbers in a notebook.

After they were satisfied, the figure rolled up their sleeves and pulled a thick protective glove over their left hand. Using their metallic right hand, the figure began to unwind a large spool of razor wire. With a loud crack and hiss of steam, the line of razor wire was driven deep into the concrete wall with a thick metal bolt.

"Five steps forward, then two steps left. Dead end here"

Another crack and hiss echoed through the room as a section of the razor wire was driven into the floor.

"Three steps right, then four steps forward."

Slowly, but surely, the mess of razor wire began to take shape. Its twisting and jagged edges were woven into a deadly maze of razor-sharp metal.

The figure gently tugged in the line of wire to test its strength.

"Nice and tight." The figure hissed happily as the wire sprang into place. "Nice and sharp."

A shiver ran up their spine as the scars on their back tingled with phantom pain. After taking a moment to calm themselves down, the figure let out a content sigh.

"He can handle it." The figure stated softly to themselves as they walked towards the open door. "I know that he can."

The figure took one last look at their handy work and felt a sense of excitement. They were looking forward to the next game.

"I survived it…so will he."

* * *

 **I am not dead.**


	11. Chapter 11: Maze of Pain

Chapter 11

* * *

Finn shifted uncomfortably as he laid against the cold floor. His back was aching, and his arm was killing him. He shivered and curled himself up to try to stay warm. He didn't want to open his eyes, not yet. He was still far too tired. But the coldness of the room was making it hard to sleep. Where had Phoebe's warmth gone? He had fallen asleep next to her in the holding room, so why couldn't he feel her warmth?

"Phoebe, are you there?" Finn asked as he moved his hand over to where she had been sleeping.

Rather than finding the young princess' sleeping form, Finn's hand felt something sharp cut into his hand.

"What the flip?!" Finn exclaimed as he pulled his hand back.

Now completely awake, Finn found that he was no longer in the holding room. Dread washed over him as he quickly realized what had happened. He had been moved to another room. He had been moved to his next test.

* * *

Finn stood up shakily and looked around the room. What he found filled him with terror. Rows and rows of razor wire stretched and snaked in every direction around him. The room was filled with a dull green light that shown eerily from the ceiling. A chain linked fence surrounded the mass of razor wire, boxing it in and trapping Finn within the deadly nest.

Finn was so confused. How had he been separated from Flame Princess and the others? When did they throw him in here? What was happening to his friends? Were they beginning their second test?

Finn's eyes spotted a tape player tied to a string hanging from the ceiling. Finn carefully reached his arm through the razor wire and plucked the tape player off of the string. Finn held the player up to his ear and with a click the tape began to play.

 _ **"Hello, Finn. Welcome to your second test. Throughout your years of adventuring, you have overcome many obstacles and defeated many foes. Yet despite the lessons that your victories should have taught you over the years, you constantly choose to confront your challenges head on. And many times, your method has led you and others to great harm."**_

Finn felt a pang of guilt in his stomach. He was ashamed to admit it, but he did have a tendency to tackle his problems head on without much thought. And, yes, a few people may have gotten hurt as a consequence of his rash actions, but no one ever died because of them.

" _ **Even when those you care for give you more efficient alternative methods to overcome a challenge, you always choose your way first. Well, this time Finn, you have to do things my way."**_

There was a loud snap of electricity as a large clock flashed to life on the opposite end of the room. Underneath the clock a door slid open with a loud hiss.

" _ **The door to your freedom is set to the timer. Once the timer runs down, the door will shut and seal you in here. Make your way through the maze and claim your freedom. How you get through the maze is up to you. Will you rush through it as fast as you can? Or will you stop and think before you act? You have two hours, Finn."**_

Finn felt a small fleeting sense of relief once he knew how long he had to complete the twisted test. But any relief he felt was quickly stifled by the daunting nature of the test. Two hours or not, he still had to make his way through the deadly maze of razor wire. Finn swallowed nervously as he looked at the gleaming metal of the razor wire. One thing he was certain of was that he was not going to leave the room unscathed. Even worse was the fact that his left arm had not yet healed from his first test. Again, his eyes wandered across the vast maze of metal and pain. He knew that he was going to get hurt, maybe even gravely so. But he wasn't going to let his fears hold him back. He was a hero, and heroes didn't quit.

" _ **Live or die. The choice is yours."**_

With those last words, the tape crackled and the player fell silent.

* * *

Finn felt his heart pound in his chest as the timer began to count down. He had two hours to find his way out of the maze.

"You've got this Finn!" He reassured himself as he slowly inched himself forward. "This is nothing compared to the first test!"

Slowly, Finn began to march into the maze, using his robotic arm to push as much of the wire out of his way as he could. At first, his plan was working well.  
He was slowly inching his way into the maze of wire. Once every few feet a line of wire would get snagged on his clothing and the razors would slice into his skin. He was fortunate that his skin was so thick due to the amount of physical harm that he had survived as an adventurer. But thick skinned or not, he still yelped in pain every time one of the thousands of razors would slice into him.

"Cram it, a dead end!" Finn shouted angrily as the path he had pushed himself through lead him to a section of the chain linked fence.

Finn carefully turned around and tried to push his way in the opposite direction of the dead end. Suddenly, a line of razor wire snagged his leg, tripping him. With a startled yell, Finn fell forward only to be stopped mid-fall by more lines of razor wire tangling his body. He let out a small scream as the razors carved deep into his body. After forcing his way through the pain, Finn slowly untangled the razor wire from his body. He winced as blood began to trickle down the deeper cuts on his body.

"Don't panic, you still got this." Finn reassured himself as he tugged his arm from a stubborn line of wire.

While he may not have been the smartest person in Ooo, Finn was not stupid. He knew that if he struggled and panicked, then he would only get more tangled in the deadly razor wire. But after an hour of wandering through the maze, Finn began to feel the cold hand of dread grip at his heart.  
He was lost, and even deeper into the maze than he had been.

"There has to be a way out!" Finn exclaimed as he squeezed through the wire. "There has to be!"

Finn let out a small yelp of pain as his arm was snagged by a line of wire that had coiled it, reopening some of his unhealed wounds.  
He hissed and winced as he pulled the wire from his arm, dragging the razors through his now bloodied flesh.

With his arm throbbing in pain, Finn fell to his knees and clutched it tightly. Tears began to roll down his cheeks.

"There has to be a way out." He whimpered weakly as he cradled his wounded arm.

But no matter how many times he told himself this, it did nothing to reassure him. Everywhere he looked was nothing but darkness and pain. The metal wires gleamed in the eerie green light of the room.

With his hope slowly fading, Finn curled up into a ball and laid against the ground.

"I'm so stupid!" Finn cried as he smacked his head against the floor angrily. "I'm so, so, so, so stupid!"

As his head struck the hard floor again, the jolt of pain from the impact jarred Finn's vision. After blinking the stars from his eyes, Finn noticed something that he hadn't before. Between the floor and the nest of razor wire was a gap that was only half a foot tall.

"No way." Finn stated in a dumbfounded tone.

As he looked through the gap, he could see a way through the maze and to the exit.

"No flippin' way!" Finn exclaimed as he slowly crawled on his stomach.

As rush of glee flooded his system as he crawled through the gap under the wire maze.

"PB, Marcy, Phoebe! I'm coming for you guys!" Finn shouted as he crawled under the maze.

* * *

Finn's plan was working far better than he could have ever imagined. By crawling on his stomach, Finn could crawl under the majority of the wire maze while slowly making his way towards the exit. But even with this new plan, Finn was not spared from suffering. The floor was rough and uneven. The tight fit between the wire and the floor also meant that Finn's back was still exposed to the majority of the lower hanging razor wire. With every inch that Finn crawled, more and more of his back was slashed open. Finn felt like his back was on fire, but he didn't care. All that mattered to him was reaching the exit before the timer ran out.

After crawling for half an hour, Finn had to stop to catch his breath. His body throbbed with pain. His back was covered in deep cuts and his chest was bruised and battered. Most of his shirt was in tatters having been torn to shreds by the razor wire. Finn hadn't even noticed that his hat had been snagged and pulled from his head. Finn's heart was pounding in his chest and his muscles ached.

A loud bone chilling shriek echoed throughout the room and rattled into Finn's ears. The shriek was unhuman and filled Finn with dread. Finn could recognize the source of the scream anywhere. It belonged to Marceline. For her to make such a loud shriek could only mean that she was in great danger. Or in great pain.

"Marceline!" Finn exclaimed as he frantically began to crawl under the wire. "I'm coming!"

* * *

Row after row of wire passed by in a blur as Finn crawled like a man possessed. He could not feel the pain that had been clawing at his back. He could not feel the fatigue in his limbs as they carried his body forward. All he could feel was desperation and determination. His friends were in danger and it was up to him to save them. Just as it had always been.

Another shriek split through the room and rattled in Finn's head. Abandoning reason, Finn leaped off the floor and began to run towards the exit of the maze. His vision was red and his ears were filled with a loud ringing sound. One by one, Finn ran through the rows of wire, snapping them with an untapped strength. Blood stained the floor as he shoved his way through the maze. Nothing was going to stop him. Nothing!

Finn let out an animalistic scream as he tore through the last row of razor wire. He had only five minutes left on the clock, not that it mattered now that he was free. Without stopping to look at the clock, Finn ran through the exit.

Finn's eyes stung at the harsh light of the holding room. At first, Finn didn't notice that he was even out of the maze. His blood was boiling and his mind was stuck in survival mode. He took another lung full of air and screamed up at the ceiling. He had done it again. He had survived his test. He had won.

* * *

As the adrenaline began to wear off, Finn became greatly aware of how badly he was bleeding.

"Oh, glob. Not this again." Finn groaned as he looked down at his body.

While he was not as deeply wounded as he had been during his first test, Finn was covered in cuts and gashes. The worst of the wounds were on his back, which there was little he could do to treat. Thinking quickly, Finn tore off the tattered remains of his shirt and began to tear it into smaller strips. He gently wrapped his arms and legs with the strips as improvised bandages.

Once all of the wounds that he could treat were bandaged, Finn fell to his knees and curled up into a ball. Has so cold, and in so much pain. But the worst part was the helplessness that he felt. He knew that his friends were somewhere else in this den torture. But he couldn't do anything to help them. As much as he hated to admit it, he had to play by Jigsaw's rules. Cold and alone, Finn began to weep softly as time slowly slipped by.

* * *

The figure with rotting pig mask smiled to themselves as they worked on their creation. They liked building things, it was simple and it was fun.  
It helped keep their mind focused and sharp, which is what Jigsaw wanted from them. It also kept them calm, something that they were having trouble with since the abduction of Jigsaw's newest players.

As they tightened the bolt on an electrical coil, a rather large maggot crawled out of the fetid pig flesh and wandered across their face.

 _Hello Pepper._ They greeted the maggot mentally. _Good to see you again._

They always named the biggest maggot Pepper. They could feel Pepper slowly inch across their mouth. The figure's tongue snaked out of their mouth and slurped up the maggot. With a squelch, the figure crushed the maggot with their teeth. They paused and savored the sweet juices of the larva before swallowing it.

 _Good bye, Pepper._

There would always arise another Pepper from the squirming nest of maggots. And they would let the next Pepper grow fat before eating them again. The figure smiled beneath their mask as they adjusted several cables to maximize electrical flow.

They were so excited for the next game. For it was another chance for them to make master Jigsaw proud. That, and they also really wanted to see the player they had been tasked with testing again. They had not seen her for several years. They had missed her. They had been looking for her. They wanted to know why they had cast them aside. Was it something that they had said? Was it their breath? Why did she abandon them? What creator throws out their own creation?

Anger flared deep in their stomach. They threw down their wrench angrily and stomped the floor. They wanted her to play their game now! Why did they have to wait?!

A loud crackle from a wall speaker froze the massive figure and ended their tantrum.

 _ **"Do not let your emotions effect the game you build. You are better than that."**_

The figure bowed their head in shame, spilling several maggots onto the floor.

 _ **"Finish your work, and report to the observation room. I want you to see what the others have built."**_

With nothing left to be said, the speaker fell silent.

* * *

The figure smiled as they looked back at their creation. Soon, the players would be waking up and they would get to play their game. With a snort, the figure stomped over towards the slumped figure bound to a chair. A collar of their own making was clamped tightly around her neck. Once the drugs wore off, she would get to play his game. They were so excited they could hardly stand it!

With a snort, the figure leaned down and with their massive hand reached out and touched the unconscious player. Her pink skin was so soft and rubbery. This was their creator, this was the one they had been looking for. The one that abandoned them. Jigsaw brought her to them, to play a game. It had to be fate. She was so soft, so pretty, so royal. They needed a taste.

Their tongue snaked out from the pig's rotting maw and slithered across her face. She was so sweet that it was almost sickening. She tasted nothing like the maggots that squirmed in their mask. With a slurp, they pulled their tongue back into their mouth. Now was not the time for playing. Now was the time for work. Once all of the finishing touches were complete, the figure turned to exit the room. But before leaving, they stopped and leaned down to look at their sleeping creator.

"Hellooo Princesss…" they slurred happily, wagging their fingers playfully.

With a snort, the figure stomped past their captive, leaving her in the dark to awaken to her next gruesome test.

* * *

 **I will try to update as much as I can, but work as got me stressed. Don't worry, I'm not** **burnt out. The game will continue.**

 **As always, feed back is welcome.**


	12. Chapter 12: Prisoner to Time

Chapter 12

* * *

Marceline awoke with a jolt and instinctively snarled as she sprang up off the floor. Her keen eyes snapped from left to right as she quickly took in her surroundings. It was immediately clear to her that she was no longer in the holding room with her slumbering friends. She was now in a very small and cramped room with a very low ceiling.

The walls were only at least six feet high, and the room was easily only twelve feet in length. There was a metal door on opposite end of the room. The door was locked with a turn dial lock. Lines of random numbers were scrawled across the walls and ceiling in red paint. Standing in the very center of the room was a tall object that was covered in a heavy tarp. It looked like a statue, but Marcy couldn't be certain. She had no interest in uncovering the object. She had more pressing matters at hand; like the fact that she still had the cursed collar locked firmly around her neck.

"How the flip did I get here?!" Marceline roared angrily as she flashed her fangs.

A sharp, stabbing pain suddenly shot through Marcy's mouth. She hissed and clamped her hand over her mouth.

"Ow, my mouth." She growled as the pain slowly faded. "What's wrong with my mouth?"

Marceline ran her tongue over her fangs, inciting another flash of pain to course through her mouth. Her fangs, they felt almost as if they were broken.

"My fangs, what did you do to my fangs?!" Marceline shouted angrily.

After receiving no answer from her captor, Marceline scanned the room for anything that might be of any use. Her veins ran cold as her eyes fell upon a tape recorder hanging from a wire in front of the tarp covered object. She knew immediately that the tape player was the trigger to whatever insane trap she had been placed in.

"Oh, this is so not gonna end well." Marceline groaned as she reached for the tape player.

Knowing that there was no avoiding whatever she was about to set off, Marceline hastily yanked the tape player off of the wire. With an audible clink of metal, the tape player was released from the wire.

Marceline flinched as the wire retracted back into the ceiling with a soft whirring sound that was followed by the subtle thudding of gears slowly beginning to turn. Whatever was in store for her, Marceline had just triggered it.

* * *

Marceline looked at the tape player with a frown and held it up to her ear. With a click, the tape player crackled to life and a familiar voice seeped from its tiny speakers.

 _ **"Hello Marceline. Welcome to your second test. Throughout your long life, you have made many acquaintances. Some you grew to call your friends. But immortality, as we both know, has a price. And that price is the knowledge that you will outlive all of your friends."**_

Marceline felt a pang of sadness ripple through her chest. The knowledge that she would outlive her friends was an ever-present dread. Usually, Marceline would keep that dread pushed far back into her mind and refused to think about it. It never got rid the horrible truth, but it made it somewhat more manageable. But the fear of knowing that her friends' days were numbered always managed to worm its way back into the front of her mind.  
She would outlive Finn. She would outlive Jake. She would even outlive Princess Bubblegum.

 _ **"With this knowledge, you have hardened yourself to the world around you. You let people in, but never let them get too close. You push people away out of fear. Not out of the fear of hurting them, but out of the fear that they will hurt you. You put on a façade of carefree happiness. But your fear has locked you in a prison of your own making, much like the room you are locked in right now. Do you see the numbers scrawled across the room? The combination to the lock could be anywhere in this room. All you have to do is find it."**_

Marceline smirked smugly.

"That's all I have to do?" she asked, unimpressed. Marceline's heightened sense of hearing would make finding the combination to the lock a walked in the park. "What's the catch?"

As if to answer her question, the tarp that concealed the statue suddenly caught fire. With a flash, the tarp quickly burnt to ashes to reveal what it had kept hidden. Standing tall in the center of the room was a massive stone crucifix.

Marceline let out a frightened snarl and threw herself back against the wall at the sight of the ancient relic. She curled herself up into a ball and tried to hide her face. For a vampire, being in the presence of such a holy relic was akin to a human walking into a mushroom cloud and being able to feel ever single cell in their body slowly die.

The effects of the relic were compounded by her demonic heritage. She could feel the relic steadily draining her energy. She forced her eyes back upon the relic and noticed the timer attached to the deity's chest. The timer showed that she had two hours.

"T-that's the catch." She hissed bitterly as she tried to pull herself off of the floor.

With a trembling hand, Marceline held the tape player back up to her ear.

 _ **"As you can see, time is not on your side. Once the timer runs out, the door will be permanently sealed shut. Only when you break the prison walls in your heart, will you be able to free yourself and live the life you have been given. But in order to do that, you must first free yourself from the prison that you now stand in. The clock is ticking, Marceline."**_

The timer on the crucifix suddenly began to count down. Marceline's game had just begun.

 _ **"Live or die. Make your choice."**_

* * *

Marceline quickly flew over to the lock and dialed in a set of numbers.

"No luck." She spat bitterly.

She quickly flew up towards the ceiling and picked out another set of numbers. Again, she rushed back to the lock and dialed in the numbers.

"Flip!" she cursed angrily. "The combination has to be somewhere in this room!"

As the minutes began to slip by, Marceline began to feel weaker and weaker as the crucifix began to weigh down on her. Her frustration and dread only grew after several attempts to enter the combination proved fruitless.

There were so many numbers, and anyone of them could have been the combination. It was like trying to find a piece of hay in a stack of needles.

"Come on, please work." She begged as she dialed in another set of numbers.

Again, her efforts were fruitless. Marceline snarled and slammed her fist against the door.

"Which one is it?!" She screamed angrily, clenching her head with her hands in frustration.

A thick lock of hair suddenly fell before Marceline's face. Confused, she looked down at her hands. Stands of her black hair were woven between her fingers.

"Great…now my hair is falling out." She said with an empty tone.

The damaging effects of the crucifix were becoming more apparent now, and Marceline knew that it was only going to get worse the longer she stayed.

* * *

Minute after minute and combination after combination, Marceline was feeling the greater effects of the holy relic. Her vision was becoming blurry and her skin felt like it was burning. Marceline uneasily dialed in another possible combination, only for it to do nothing.

"Why isn't this working?" she whimpered as she flew across the room to the opposite wall. While desperately scanning the wall of numbers, Marceline felt her stomach lurch. She gagged and emptied her stomach on the floor. With her strength failing her, Marceline lowered herself to the floor.

"This is bad." She whimpered as she looked down at her weakening body.

With her body dying, her mind was now slowly beginning to slip. Between her thoughts, she could hear dark whispers in demonic tongues.

 _Feed. You need to feed. You need blood._

Marceline shook her head and covered her ears.

"Shut up." She sobbed. "Just shut up."

She opened her eyes and scanned the room. There were still so many numbers left, and anyone of them could be the combination. Her eyes fell upon the timer. It showed that she only had forty minutes left. Her dread filled eyes lingered on the crucifix, taking in the features of the deity that was nailed to it.

"What do you want from me?" she whimpered weakly. "Why are you hurting me?"

The statue of the deity remained silent, its eyes remained looking pleadingly up towards the ceiling. Marceline's eyes followed the deity's eyes and spotted something that she hadn't notices. Resting on top of the crucifix was something shimmering.

Gathering her strength, Marceline steadily forced herself to get closer towards the relic. Her skin burned and her insides writhed like angry snakes as she hovered a single foot away from the relic. With a snarl, Marceline reached out and snatched the shimmering object before hastily retreating to the corner of the room.

The shimmering object turned out to be a pair of pliers.

"Clever…very clever." Marceline hissed softy.

Jigsaw had set up the room knowing that she would actively avoid looking at the crucifix. Placing the pliers on top of it was the same as hiding it in plain sight.

A sudden wave of pain tore through Marceline mouth. Running her tongue across her fangs, Marceline felt small etchings in them. Her mind went back to what Jigsaw had told her.

" _The combination to the lock could be anywhere in this room."_

An idea suddenly formed.

"He said the combination was somewhere in this room." Marceline stated to herself. "He never said that the combination was on the walls, just that it was somewhere in the room."

Marceline ran her tongue over her fangs again to confirm her suspicion.

"I'm in the room." Marceline stated bluntly. "My fangs are in me. So…by that stupid logic, my fangs are in the room."

The pieces were all falling into place.

Marceline shook her head and looked down at the pliers in her hand.

"The combination is on my fangs." She stated shakily. "My fangs gotta come out…"

* * *

Marceline gripped the pliers tightly in her hands. She was so not looking forward to what she was about to do, but there was no avoiding it. She opened her mouth and extended her fangs. With shaking hands, she brought the pliers up to her mouth. She flinched as she felt the metal touch her fangs.

 _On three!_ She said to herself as she readied herself. _One. Two. Three!_

Marceline clamped down on her right fang with the pliers and began to pull. White hot pain ripped through her body as her fang broke away from her gums.

For a vampire, pulling out a fang was like pulling off an arm. With another tug, the root of the fang snapped.

Marceline shrieked in an unearthly manner and fell to her knees. Black ichor ran down her mouth and dripped onto the floor. Without hesitation, Marceline clamped the pliers over her remaining fang.

She screamed and pulled as hard as she could against the fang. With a sickening pop and snap, she ripped her fang out of her mouth.

Agonized, Marceline uneasily flew over towards the locked door. She looked down at her fangs and saw numbers scrimshawed into them.

"Nine, three, eighteen." She said aloud.

Marceline carefully dialed the numbers into the lock, pleading that they were correct. After dialing in the last digit of the combination, Marceline was greeted by a loud thud followed by the turning of gears. With a hiss, the door slid open, filling the room with a blinding light.

A rush of joy tore through her body as Marceline scrambled out the door and into the light.

She had done it again!

She had survived!

* * *

Marceline's weakened body fell to the floor with a loud smack. Her ears were ringing and her vision was clouded. Her mouth felt as though she was being jabbed with a hot iron. She knew that her fangs would grow back quickly, but her mind was elsewhere.

Her mind was stuck in a primal mode of survival. She needed to heal. She needed to feed. She needed blood.

A familiar metallic scent wafted into her nose. It was the smell of blood. She began to sniff madly for it, crawling on the floor like a beast. She stopped and licked up a few droplets off the floor. She followed the droplet trail, licking up any that she came across.

 _So sweet!_ Marceline thought madly as she desperately licked the floor. _I need more!_

She felt a sudden stabbing pain as her new fangs burst out from her gums. She snarled stretched her jaws.

"Marcy?"

Marceline's head snapped towards the source of the voice. Her eyesight was still clouded and her mind was still muddled. She sniffed the air and growled hungrily.

She had found her next meal.

* * *

Finn slowly backed away as Marceline crawled closer with a mad, hungry look in her eyes.

"Marcy, it's me, Finn. Your friend, remember?" he asked as he took a cautious step backwards.

His voice fell on deaf ears as the mad vampire queen continued to creep closer, like a hungry wolf corning its prey.

"Marcy…don't do anything nuts." Finn begged as he pressed himself against the wall.

He had nowhere to run or hide, just where the starved vampire wanted him.

Marceline let out a bone shaking shriek before lunging at Finn. Finn yelled and raised his robotic arm. With a loud clang, Marceline's jaws snapped tightly over Finn's metal arm. She thrashed and struggled fiercely as Finn tried to push her back with his other arm.

"Marcy, you gotta snap out of it!" Finn shouted as he struggled to keep Marceline at bay.

Marceline snarled and pinned Finn's arms to the floor. She licked her drawling maw and growled.

"Marcy, it's me, Finn!" he screamed desperately. "Your jam-buddy!"

Finn's heart sank as his words did nothing. Marceline opened her jaws and reared back like a snake about to strike.

"Please, Marcy…" Finn whimpered as he shut his eyes tightly.

* * *

Marceline hissed and snapped towards Finn's neck. But before her jaws could reach him, a metallic arm snapped tightly around Marceline's neck. With a startled yelp, Marceline was pulled off of Finn and thrown to the floor. Finn looked up to see one of the pig masked goons standing between him and the crazed Marceline.

The masked figure looked back to Finn before returning their attention to Marceline. Finn recognized the figure. They were the one that stapled his wounds shut. Why were they there? Where they saving him?

Marceline sprang off the floor and faced the attacker. The masked figure's metallic arm clicked and whirred as they flexed their fingers in a challenging manner. Marceline shrieked and leaped forward with her claws and fangs bared. Despite her faster movements, the masked figure managed to side step the attack and punch Marceline hard in the stomach. Marceline gagged and fell to her knees. The figure grabbed her by her hair and held her up off the floor. From within their robe, they withdrew a blood bag.

The masked figure jammed the blood bag into Marceline's mouth and held it firmly in place. With a loud pop, the blood bag began to drain into Marceline's mouth.

* * *

As the blood ran out of the bag and into Marceline's stomach, her clouded mind began to clear. She blinked as her vision returned to her and the ringing in her ears faded. Her eyes darted from Finn, to the pig masked figure, to the blood bag. Once the blood bag was empty, the figure let go of her hair and let her drop to the floor.

"Marcy!" Finn exclaimed as he rushed over to her huddled form.

The masked figure shook their head in disappointment. A door out of the room slid open, their work was done for now. Without another word, the figure turned and exited the room.

* * *

Finn carefully held Marceline's head off of the floor and gently shook her.

"Marcy, talk to me!"

Marceline suddenly pushed Finn away and covered her face.

"Stay away from me Finn!" she shouted as tears rolled down her cheeks.

Taken aback, Finn slowly inched closer towards Marceline.

"You can't get rid of your jam-buddy that easily, Marcy." Finn stated firmly.

"Finn, I just tried to kill you and drink your blood!" Marceline shouted angrily. "Take the hint, and get away while you can!"

"I'm not gonna leave you, Marcy." Finn stated firmly as he took her hand in his. "What kind of friend would that make me?"

"A smart one." Marceline muttered bitterly.

"Good thing I'm not smart." Finn responded with a smile.

Marceline couldn't help but smile. Even in this kind of mathed up situation, Finn still went out of his way to cheer up his friends.

"You're a punk, you know that?" Marceline asked as she smiled sadly with tears swelling in her eyes.

"I learned from the best." Finn said with a smile.

Finn opened his arms up to Marceline. She closed her eyes and hugged the young adventurer. Marceline erupted into a fit of sobbing as Finn held her.

Everyone had a breaking point, and Marceline had reached hers that day. All the pain, the guilt, it all came pouring out of her.

"I'm so sorry Finn!" she cried loudly. "I'm so, so, sorry! Please don't hate me!"

"Marcy, I could never hate you." Finn said calmly. "So, you got hungry and a little grumpy, big deal. You should Jake before he eats breakfast. He's way scarier than you."

Marceline whimpered and rubbed her eyes. In that moment, she realized that the purpose of her last test wasn't to break her body, it was to break her mind. Jigsaw had pushed her so close to the edge. But Finn was there to pull her back.

"Ow, watch my back, Marcy." Finn stated with a wince.

Marceline looked down and saw all of the wounds that covered Finn's back. She could see on his arms where he had treated his wounds, but figured that he couldn't reach the gashes on his back.

"Turn around and hold still." Marceline instructed. "We gotta do something about those wounds on your back. Bonnie would never let me hear the end of it if you got an infection on my watch."

Finn complied and turned his back towards Marceline. He flinched as he felt her left up the tattered remains of his shirt.

Marceline couldn't believe how many cuts and gashes Finn had on his back. It was like he had gone toe to toe with a weed-whacker. For him not to be in a crippling amount of pain was impressive. Several of the deeper gashes were still bleeding. She licked her lips nervously. She couldn't believe what she was about to do.

"This might sting a bit." She warned.

Finn gasped as he felt Marceline's tongue gently run up his back.

"Marcy, w-what are you doing?" he stammered.

Marceline's tongue coiled back into her mouth as she looked up at him.

"I'm coating your wounds with an enzyme that stops blood flow." She explained she stuck the tip of her tongue up at him. "Stop being a baby and let me finish."

Finn swallowed the lump in his throat and turned back around. He wasn't about to argue with Marceline about enzymes or whatever. As long as his wounds got treated, he was happy. Finn shuttered as Marceline ran her tongue across his open wounds. The enzyme stung his back, but left it feeling numb. Not pleasantly numb, but numb.

* * *

Marceline shuttered as she licked Finns wounds. His blood was so sweet, and pungent. She felt ashamed for what she was doing. But Finn's wounds needed to be treated before he got an infection. As she licked Finn's back clean, Marceline couldn't help but notice how muscular his back was. Finn wasn't obviously muscular, but he was toned. The young adventurer had grown up so much since she had met him.

He wasn't the little kid that he was when they first met. Before she knew it, he would be man with all the princess across Ooo pining after him. A dreadful though flashed into her mind. Before she knew it, Finn would be old and frail. Then, he would be dead and gone forever.

Marceline shook that image out of her head as fast as she could.

 _I'll cross that bridge when I come to it._ She told herself. _Right now, Finn needs my help._

With one final lick, Finn's back was cleaned and his wounds treated. Marceline sighed and placed a gentle kiss on the back of Finn's neck before resting her head against him.

"Uhhh…Marcy, are you okay?" Finn asked, caught off guard by the kiss.

Finn got his answer from a loud snore that Marceline let out. She was so exhausted that she had passed out.

"Sleep tight, Marcy." Finn said with a smile. "I'll keep you safe."

* * *

The figure smiled as they looked over the observation cameras. They had seen everything the vampire queen had been through. They ran their finger along the tip of their pig mask's tusk. The hiss of the door opening met their keen ears and brought a smile to their face. The familiar form of the metal armed figure walked through the opened door.

"Are you hurt?" the tusked figure asked with a calm velvety voice.

"You know the answer to that already." The metal armed figure responded curtly. "So why ask?"

The tusked figure smiled and chuckled softly.

"Old habits die hard, love." They stated as they turned from the observation screen. "Vampires can be very unpredictable when starved and beaten."

"You would know, wouldn't you?" the metal armed figure retorted, inciting another chuckle from the tusked figure.

"Anyway, are we going to make the jump soon?" the tusked figure asked.

"Within the next few minutes." The metal armed figure answered.

"Oh, good." The tusked figure chuckled happily. "That will make finding us even more challenging."

"Just be ready. Jigsaw doesn't except failure."

With that, the metal armed figure exited the room, leaving the tusked figure in the dark. They smiled and propped their feet up onto the desk and withdrew a red acoustic guitar. They began to gently strum the guitar as they watched over the security cameras.

"These games are proving to be much more interesting than I had hoped."

* * *

A low rumble reverberated out from the cloud of black smog as it moved across Ooo. Ancient machinery began to churn and move as forgotten magics began to ripple through the air.

Orange and red sparks of lightning began to erupt out of the cloud. The terrible sound of massive saw blades split through the air as spirals of energy began to tear into the space before them.

With a deafening boom that could be heard for miles, the ancient infernal machine vanished in a blinding flash of light.

* * *

 **For those with a sweet tooth, you'll love the next chapter.**


	13. Chapter 13: Pound of Candy

Chapter 13

* * *

The moon shown high in the night sky, blessing the world with its pale light. Countless stars twinkled in the sky, unshrouded by artificial lights. The air was calm and cool. Everything was still as the creatures of the land slumbered. Everything was as it should have been.

A sudden stray spark of orange lightning snapped through the air before quickly fading. Another spark flashed and spiraled up towards the sky. More and more sparks began to flash through the air, each one growing more powerful than the last. The sparks of energy had grown into bolts of orange and red lightning that danced and snaked angrily from a growing epicenter in the air. Thunder rolled as the lightning strikes grew in intensity.

Suddenly, a flash of light illuminated the night sky as a wall of massive screaming saw blades erupted out of the thin air. Black smog spilled out of the growing tear like blood from a wound. The ground shook and quaked as an ancient machine forced itself into the unsuspecting world. Storm clouds began to spiral high in the sky as lightning flashed wildly. The moon that once shown brightly in the night sky was shrouded in the black smog cloud that spilled out from the machine.

The deafening rumble of gears and pistons echoed across the land and the machine forced itself out of the tear. Once free from the tear, the machine slowed before finally crawling to a halt. With a roar of thunder, the tear snapped shut behind the machine. The sound of grinding metal filled the air as the machine stiffened. It would rest where it stood, hidden within the cloud of smog. Once it was done resting, it would continue on its mission. But for now, the machine would remain still.

* * *

Princess Bubblegum groaned as the feeling in her body gradually returned. The princess was sitting in a dimly lit room. In front of her was a large wooden table. She blinked the haze out of her eyes and flexed her fingers to work the stiffness out of them.

Still not fully awake, Princess Bubblegum ran her hands over her shoulders and held them up to her face. Her body was glistening with a strange fluid. Her eyes lazily fell back down to the wooden table before her. Sitting on the table was a serrated knife and a large meat cleaver. Both tools were chained to the table. Sitting just below the knife and cleaver was a coil of surgical tubing.

 _I must still be dreaming._ Princess Bubblegum told herself. The last thing she remembered was falling asleep next to Marceline. Surely, Marcy or Finn wouldn't let their captors take her again without a fight. _Marcy and Finn wouldn't let this happen to me._

Her hands wandered up to her neck. Her heart jumped as her hands met the cold metal of a collar locked firmly around her neck. Panic quickly jarred the princess out of her haze. She was not dreaming. She was no longer in the holding room. She was no longer with her friends. Somehow, this 'Jigsaw' had managed to separate her from them as they slept.

"Where am I?" she asked as she pushed herself out of the chair.

As she stood, a cable attached to her collar was released with a loud ping.

"Fudge."

* * *

Several harsh lights snapped to life, illuminating the room further. The room that Bonnie found herself trapped in was much larger than she had initially thought. The room was easily thirty feet long and ten feet wide. The walls and floors were made of hard concrete with several metal pipes running through them. The center of the room was separated by a large rusty metal grate.

While most of the room was illuminated, the half of the room on the opposite side of the metal grate remained shrouded in darkness. Through the darkness, Princess Bubblegum could hear the sound of someone groaning.

"Hello, can you hear me?!" Bonnie shouted as she rushed over to the grate.

"What...Princess Bubblegum. Is that you?" the unexpected voice of Princess Cookie muttered weakly.

 _Baby Snaps?_ Bonnie asked herself in disbelief. _What are they-_

Terror ripped through Bonnie's mind. Princess Cookie had not yet fully awakened. They had not yet triggered the device on their end of the room. There was still time to stop him!

"Princess Cookie! Whatever you do, do not stand up!" Bonnie shouted as loud as she could. "You'll set off-"

"What's this I'm stuck on? Where am I?! What's going on?! Where are my chocolate chips?!" the confused and frightened cookie shouted before lurching forward in a panic.

"NO!" Bonnie screamed.

With a loud ping, the cable attached to Princess Cookie's collar was released. Several more industrial lights snapped to life, fully illuminating the room. The lights unveiled even more horrors for the captive princesses. Sitting ominously between the grates that separated the room was a large scale. Each side of the scale had a plastic tube that led to a metal framed slot in the grate.

"What is all of this?" Princess Cookie stammered as they frantically looked around the room.

Princess Bubblegum was silent as she studied everything that she could about the room. She knew better than to try to predict what was about to be done to them. Whatever cruelty this room had in store for them, they would have no choice but to stand and face it.

"It's a game…"

* * *

A loud crackle of static and flash of light startled the two princesses as an old television flickered on. The static on the screen quickly cut to the ominous ghost-white dummy. Slowly, its head turned and faced the screen. Its red eyes turned towards Princess Bubblegum.

 _ **"Hello, Bonnibel."**_ The dummy spoke.

The dummy's eyes then turned towards Princess Cookie.

 _ **"Hello, Baby Snaps."**_ The dummy greeted.

A loud thud echoed across the room followed by the sound of grinding stone as two sections of the ceiling opened on both sides of the room above the two princesses. From out of the opening in the ceiling, two large tesla coils lowered. With the low rumble of an unseen power transformer, the two tesla coils hummed with life.

 _ **"I want to play a game."**_ The dummy stated coldly.

The dummy's eyes snapped towards Princess Bubblegum and flickered red.

 _ **"In times now past, candy held little value. It was given as a reward to children for good behavior. It was sold for pocket change. It was used to simply cleanse the palate of a bad taste. But you, Bonnibel, gave candy a value that is immeasurable. You gave candy life, and free will. Yet despite this, you toil endlessly in your labs trying to create and prefect more candy lifeforms, unappreciative of the ones that you have already created. You claim to value your people, yet you create and replace them with such little effort. What is their candy worth to you, Bonnibel?"**_

Princess Bubblegum scowled and curled her hands into fists. She loved all of her creations equally. She loved them enough to rebuild and prefect them. Her people loved her for what she did for them. Her people's lives could not be measured by value for she valued all of them.

A sudden, dark thought wormed its way into Bonnibel's mind. Out of every batch of candy people that were successfully made, there was always one that never fully congealed. Most of the time, the uncongealed would be tended to by the doctors and nurses of the candy kingdom. For the most part they were harmless and lacked the intelligence to be any danger to those around them. She made sure they were taken care of and out of sight. It was for their own safety. Doubt slithered in the princess's mind like a parasite. When was the last time she checked on her uncongealed creations? She had been so busy in her labs recently that she had lost track of time. Had she forgotten about them?

The dummy's eyes snapped over towards Princess Cookie.

 _ **"I ask you the same question, Baby Snaps."**_ The dummy spoke. _**"What is candy worth to you? You have always wanted to be a princess, just like Bonniebel. You were unhappy with the life you were given. When you were denied what you wanted, you chose to break the law, endangering not just yourself, but those that trusted you. Only after surviving your attempt at suicide, were you given your title as Princess Cookie. Now you have used your limited power to gain favors from those beneath you. You too have become unappreciative of the life that you have been given."**_

The tesla coils above the two princesses began to hum loudly as lights on their collars began to flash red in color.

 _ **"The devices that you both are wearing are made of a highly conductive metal. The generator that is powering the tesla coils above you is powerful enough to keep this facility running on its own for centuries."**_

The dummy's eyes darted back towards Bonniebel.

 _ **"You, Princess have been smeared with a conductive gel to compensate for your rubber construction."**_

A buzzer blared loudly as a red light flashed above the scale in the center of the room, showing a timer attached to the scale.

 _ **"The scale before the two of you is your only path to freedom. However, only one of you may pass. And the toll is the ultimate sacrifice, the sacrifice of candy. Before you are the instruments to exact this candy. Move with haste though, for when the sixty second timer hits zero the one who has given the most candy will release their bindings while the tesla coil above the opponent's head will activate and electrocute them to oblivion."**_

Princess Bubblegum and Princess Cookie looked at each other with the purest form of terror on their faces. This was nothing like the test that Bonnie had been through before. This time there was another victim, another player who had their own life to fight for. The terror on Princess Cookie's eyes was slowly replaced with a grim resolution. Princess Bubblegum shook with fear but knew that there was no other way out of this game. They both would have to play, but only one would survive.

 _ **"Who will offer the most candy in order to save their life?"**_

The sixty second timer suddenly began ticking. The game had started.

 _ **"The choice is yours."**_

With the message sent, the television flickered off.

* * *

Princess Cookie rushed over towards the table and tore off their dress.

"I'm not gonna die for you, Bonnie!" he shouted angrily as he picked up the serrated knife.

With their hands shaking terribly, Princess Cookie brought the knife up towards their side. A pain filled cry filled the room as Princess Cookie began to carve a sizable chunk out of their body. With the chunk cut clean from their body, Princess Cookie limped towards the grate and shoved the chunk of cookie through the slot. The scales clicked as they tipped in Princess Cookie's favor.

Princess Bubblegum rushed behind her table and picked up the serrated knife. Thinking quickly, Bonniebel took the knife and cut off her bubblegum hair. She rushed to the slot and pushed the mass of bubblegum through. With a click, the scale tipped slightly in her favor. But it wasn't nearly enough to outweigh the chunk that Cookie had given. Bonniebel couldn't afford to lose. She had a kingdom to govern and people who cared for her. She looked down at her left arm and swallowed the lump in her throat. She needed to offer more of her candy.

 _For the Candy Kingdom._ Princess Bubblegum told herself as she grabbed the surgical tubing.

She quickly took the tubing and tide it tightly below her shoulder. With her improvised tourniquet in place, Bonnie picked the serrated knife back up and quickly began to cut into her forearm. A hiss of pain quickly turned into an agonized scream as Bonnie began to cut deeper into her arm. Sugary syrup spilled out of her arm as the knife carved into her candy flesh with ease.

"For the Candy Kingdom!" Bonnie screamed as she continued to cut into her arm.

The room was filled with the overlapping screams of the two princesses as the timer continued to count down. Neither one could afford to lose to the other.

Princess Cookie sobbed as they pulled off another sizable chunk off of their body. Again, they limped of towards the grate and slid their offering into the slot. The scales tipped further in the Cookie's favor.

"No, no, no…" Bonnie muttered in panic as she continued to cut into her arm.

She wasn't making any further progress. The knife was sharp, but not sharp enough. Her eyes darted towards the cleaver that had remained untouched. Unlike the knife, there was nothing surgical about the cleaver. It was large and heavy, but it shimmered in the light. It had clearly been sharpened before.

Any hesitation the princess had was quickly banished as her eyes darted back to the timer. She only had twenty seconds left. The tesla coils that loomed ominously overhead began to hum louder as they prepared to pass their judgment on the two princesses.

"NO!" Bonnie screamed in terror.

Without hesitation, she picked up the cleaver and held it in the air. With a powerful swing, she brought the cleaver down onto her arm. With a sickening crack and gush of syrup, the cleaver hacked deep into the princess's forearm. Fluids ran down Bonnie's leg as she emptied her bladder from the shock and pain. Again, she raised the cleaver and brought it back down onto her arm. Syrup gushed out and stained the wooden table as she pulled the cleaver out of her arm. Bonnie rose the cleaver again and began to hack madly at her arm. The table shook with each successful chop. Bonnie wasn't thinking about the pain any longer. She wasn't even thinking about her kingdom any more. Her mind was solely focused on surviving. With one final swing of the cleaver, Bonnie's left arm was hacked off.

Bonnie picked up her severed arm and uneasily limped towards the grate. With a sob of pain and sorrow, Bonnie shoved her severed arm into the slot. With a loud clang, the scales tipped completely in Bonnie's favor. A loud buzzer blared throughout the room as the timer reached zero. Bonnie's collar clicked and fell off of her neck.

Bonnie looked with tear-filled eyes through the grate at Princess Cookie. Cookie's eyes were wide with fear and disbelief.

"I'm sorry…I'm so sorry." Bonnie sobbed as she slid to her knees, clutching the bleeding stump where her arm once was.

The tesla coil above Princess Cookie began to roar as electricity flowed into it from the unseen generator.

"I just wanted to be a princess like you." Princess Cookie rasped as fear gripped their throat. "Just like you Bonnie."

The room was flooded with a blinding white light as the tesla coil above Princess Cookie activated. An arc of electricity tore through the Princess's body with little resistance. Bonnie shut her eyes and cowered as the electricity danced and snapped angrily. She could feel the heat through the grate. The angry roar of electricity suddenly began to fade into a hum before finally going silent. Bonnie opened her eyes and looked through the grate towards the opposite side of the room. Where Princess Cookie once stood was nothing more than a pile of ashes.

* * *

A loud buzzer blared as a door slid open. Bonnie whimpered and forced herself off the floor. She looked through the metal grate and stared at her severed arm.

"C-can I have m-my arm back?" she asked pleadingly, her voice shaking from the shock. "P-please…?"

Her pleas were met with silence. Princess Bubblegum whimpered and slowly limped out of the room. She felt something squish beneath her feet. Bonnie looked down and saw that she had stepped on a rather large maggot. There were several maggots squirming on the floor leading out of the room. She didn't even care, she was too numb to notice. Bonnie walked through the door and felt nothing but guilt. Yes, she had won. But at what cost?

* * *

The sound of a door hissing open jolted Finn from his thoughts. Bonnie limped into the room and slid to her knees. Finn's blood ran cold as his eyes fell upon the princess clutching the bleeding stump where her left arm once was.

"Princess!" Finn shouted as he rushed to her aid.

Marceline who had been asleep was awoken by the sound of Bonnie's crying. Her stomach lurched and her blood boiled as she saw what had been done to the once proud Princess Bubblegum.

"What did they do to you?!" Marceline asked in a panic.

Bonnie grit her teeth and showed the vampire the stump where her arm once was. Marceline fell silent as her eyes lingered on the still bleeding stump. Marceline snarled and dug her fingers beneath her collar. She thrashed angrily as she tried to pry the cursed collar off of her neck.

"They're gonna pay!" she hissed fiercely as she fell on her back trying to tear off the collar. "I'll make them all pay!"

"Just stop it, Marcy!" Bonnie cried loudly. "Just, please…stop it."

Marceline looked at Bonnie with disbelief, but ceased her futile struggling. Finn gave the princess her space, sensing that no amount of physical comfort would be of any help.

Bonnie let out a loud sob as the shock and dread of what she had been forced to do weighed down on her like an avalanche.

"It was me and Princess Cookie," she whimpered. "Jigsaw made us offer our candy. Whoever offered the most was the winner."

Bonnie sobbed as she clung to her stump.

"I won…but, Baby Snaps…" she trailed off, too tired to speak.

Princess Bubblegum's eyes suddenly rolled back into her head as she passed out. Finn and Marceline both rushed to her aid.

"Is she still breathing?" Finn asked as he checked for a pulse.

"Just barely, this is bad." Marceline stated as panic slowly seeped into her heart.

The princess had lost too much of her sugary ichor. The shock of the losing her arm and the emotional trauma had overwhelmed the princess. She was barely holding on.

"Come on, Bonnie. You have to pull through." Marceline pleaded as she held Bonnie's head off the floor. "Ooo needs you, your kingdom needs you, I need you!"

* * *

The sound of a door hissing open alerted the two as two masked figures entered the room. The first figure wore a white robe and a tusked pig mask. They were also armed with a crossbow. The second figure was the giant with the rotting pig mask. Hanging loosely around its neck was Princess Bubblegum's severed arm tied with twine. Marceline felt her blood boil at the sight of Bonnie's arm being worn like a trophy.

"I wouldn't try anything, sweetie." The tusked figure said in a calm velvety voice.

"You think that crossbow can stop me?" Marceline growled threateningly.

The tusked figure let out a cold chuckle.

"It's not meant for you, sweetheart." They said with an amused tone. The figure leveled the crossbow and aimed it at Finn. "It's meant for him."

Marceline froze as the figure crept closer. Finn put himself between Bonnie and the two figures in attempt to shield her.

"What do you want?" Marceline asked coldly.

"Why, to play a game, of course." The tusked figure answered venomously.

The tusked figure withdrew a small black key from within their robe and held it out for all to see. The giant figure snorted and pulled Bonnie's severed arm from around their neck and held it out in front of them.

"This key is the key to your collar, Marcy." The tusked figure stated calmly. "This is the key to your freedom."

Marceline's eyes widened at the prospect, but she knew their had to be a catch.

"As you can see, my friend here has your princess's arm. Still fresh, still warm, still sweet." The figure spoke. "It can still be reattached."

"What's the catch?" Marceline asked anxiously.

"The catch?" the figure repeated with a playful tone. "You can only choose one."

Marceline fell silent as she thought to herself. If she chose the key, then she could escape, but there was no guarantee that she would be able to save her friends. However, Bonnie needed her arm. If she was going to survive the games, she would need both arms. Even with candy medicine, Bonnie would never be able to regrow a perfect arm to replace the one she had sacrificed. Marceline couldn't do that to Bonnie. If giving up her freedom meant that her friend would be spared permanent disfiguration, then Marcy would gladly give it away.

"The arm, or the key?" the tusked figure asked playfully. "Make your choice."

"The arm!" Marceline shouted angrily. "Now fix my princess!"

The tusked figure let out a laugh as they threw the key to the floor and crushed it beneath their boot. A tiny puff of black smoke escaped the cursed metal of the key in the form of a screaming face.

"Go on, big guy." The tusked figure stated as they patted the giant figure on the shoulder. "Work your magic."

The sound of turning gears and pistons suddenly flooded the room as the giant lurched towards the unconscious princess. Its body seemed to elongate forward like a snake as three spindly metallic arms sprang out from beneath its black robes. Marceline and Finn both backed away as the giant gently lifted Bonnie off of the floor.

"Easy you two." The tusked figure warned leveling their crossbow. "Don't do anything stupid."

The giant snorted as they placed Bonnie's severed arm up towards the stump.

Bonnie's eyes flickered open and was greeted by the terrifying visage of a rotting, maggot filled pig head. She screamed in terror and thrashed against the giant's grip.

"Marcy, Finn, please help me!" she screamed.

Her pleas for help quickly evolved into a blood curdling scream as the giant smashed her severed arm into her stump. One of the spider-like arms began to inject a green fluid into the stump and the arm. The other arms began to tug and pull the rubbery flesh between the limb and the stump together. Princess Bubblegum was breathing so fast that a fine foam spilled out from the sides of her mouth.

The giant reached into the maw of their mask and removed a wad of chewed gum. Much to Bonnie's shock and disgust, the giant stretched the gum over the gap where her arm and stump met. Bonnie's mind was racing as a tingling ran through her once severed arm. Whatever this creature was doing, it was working. She was so shocked that she didn't even flinch as several massive staples were driven into her arm. In the end, Bonnie could feel her fingers, but just barely.

With its work done, the giant leaned in close towards the princess. She gagged at the smell of its putrid breath. A long, slimy tongue snaked out of the maw of the mask and ran across the princess's face. Several maggots fell out of the mask and landed on Bonnie's face. Her mind raced back to the game room she had been in. There were maggots on the floor. Her brain quickly put two and two together.

"You…you built that room." She stated weakly. "You put me in there. You put Princess Cookie in there. You…did this to me."

The giant tilted its head to the side as if puzzled.

"Who are you?" Bonnie asked, desperate for and answer.

A terrible, sickening thought suddenly shot through her mind like lightning.

"Did I make you?"

"Come on, big guy." The tusked figure ordered. "We got work to do. Let the princess go."

The giant snorted and dropped Bonnie. Her arm spasmed as the nerve endings fired randomly as she struck the ground. The two figures walked towards and opening door, leaving the three in shocked silence.

"I knew you would make the right choice, Marcy!" the tusked figure shouted happily as he waved farewell. With a loud thud, the door slid shut.

* * *

Marceline rushed over to Bonnie and gently put her arms around her. Finn was quick to join in on the group hug.

"It's okay, Bonnie." Marceline assured as she gently kissed her cheek. "This isn't your fault."

"Yeah, PB, don't blame yourself." Finn stated calmly as he held her hand. "This isn't on you. It's on Jigsaw."

Bonnie shivered and leaned against Marceline.

"Maybe it's not all on Jigsaw, Finn." Bonnie stated grimly. "Perhaps I've been weighing in on the wrong side of the scale, and this is what I deserve."

"Don't say that." Finn ordered firmly. "No one deserves to be here. No matter what they have done."

Bonnie smiled and held onto his hand as tightly as her reattached arm would allow without pain. Even in this dire situation, Finn still believed that the proud and the just were still the image of good and morality.

He still didn't understand, even after all these years.

The good do not know how close to evil they truly are.


	14. Chapter 14: Fire and Ice

Chapter 14

Flame Princess sniffled as she wiped a tear from her eye. She had been standing for what felt like hours. Her feet hurt and her legs were sore. She was too afraid to move from her spot. She had awoken from her slumber, only to find that she was no longer with Finn or the others. She could only guess what fresh terror lay hidden within the darkness. There was no light, with the exception of the dull glow that her body gave off. She was surrounded by a darkness the likes of which she had never experienced before. What was worse was the silence. The only noise that she could hear was the dull crackling of her own flames.

"Finn…Marcy…Bonnie…anyone?" Phoebe asked nervously out into the blackness.

Of course, there was no response. Why would there be? Everything had been so deathly silent and still since she had woken up. It was as if the house of pain had died. But she knew if anything that her monstrous prison was merely sleeping, and that it would awaken once again.

The floor began to tremble beneath Phoebe's feet. The low groan of straining metal rumbled through the air. What sounded like an explosion blasted through the thick concrete walls as everything suddenly heaved forward. Flame Princess let out a squeal of surprise as she was thrown forward. With a loud smack, her body hit the floor. As she laid on the floor, several blue lights flickered and snapped to life. Phoebe opened her eyes and pushed herself off of the floor. The blue lights revealed that she was standing in the middle of a narrow hallway with arrows pointing towards an unseen exit. The pounding of pistons and the turning of gears once again could be heard through the walls. The princess's fears were validated. The machine of suffering had awakened, and the game was still to be played.

* * *

Flame Princess cautiously made her way down the hallway, following the arrows that had been painted on the walls. It wasn't like she had any choice. She had checked the opposite end of the hallway only to find that there was no door. Her only option was to follow the arrows and hope they led to the way out.

As she made her way further down the hallway, Phoebe began to notice that the air was growing colder. The temperature continued to drop the further down the hallway she walked. The walls were glistening with patches of frost. Phoebe shivered and rubbed her shoulders for warmth. She tried to bolster her flames only for the cursed collar to suppress them.

The hallway finally came to a stop. Standing before Flame Princess was a thick, frost coated metal door with the words "Face your fears" painted in big red letters. Phoebe could hardly imagine what sick trap her captors had in store for her. The memories of her first test made her body ache with phantom pain and her mind race with fear. Flame Princess looked down at her hands and then looked back up at the door. She shut her eyes and placed her hands on the door. Steam hissed off of the ice-covered door as Flame Princess pushed against it with all of her might. With a pained whimper, Flame Princess shoved the door open. A blast of cold air whooshed out as the doors opened to a darkened room. Flame Princess held her shoulders as tightly as she could to keep warm. With no other option but to press forward, Flame Princess hesitantly walked through the door and entered the room.

As Flame Princess cautiously stepped into the dimly lit room, the door behind her slammed shut. Phoebe quickly spun around and checked the door.

"Cram it, locked." She spat angrily.

Now trapped, the young princess turned her attention back towards the room. The room was built like a freezer, with cooling pipes and fans blowing ice cold air into the room. Phoebe scanned the room until her eyes fell upon a dark silhouette in the center of the room. As the princess stepped forward, at tile sank into the floor.

A dull blue light cut through the dark and unshrouded the silhouette. The silhouette was revealed to be a stark-naked woman chained by her arms hanging from the ceiling. The woman's feet were just a few feet off of the floor. They too were chained tightly in place. Flame Princess noticed a dull blue glow radiating off of the chains. For whatever reason, the woman's chains were cursed.

Four metal pipes jutted out of the floor around the woman. Two at her front and two at her back. Phoebe carefully approached the woman to get a better look at her. The woman looked like she was in her mid-thirties, with shoulder length blue hair. Confused, Phoebe carefully reached out and poked the woman's stomach. Phoebe quickly pulled her hand back as her finger sank into the woman's body as if touching the surface of a pond.

 _A water nymph?_ Flame Princess asked. _That explains the cursed metal. They are probably the only things keeping her from simply seeping through the chains._

Phoebe's eyes fell upon the four pipes again. This time she noticed that there were several metal nozzles that lined the pipes. At the base of the pipes were metal tubes that snaked across the floor and into the walls. The princess then noticed the familiar shape of a tape player sitting below the nymph's feet. Phoebe quickly crouched down and picked the tape player up.

A shrill gasp suddenly escaped the chained water nymph as she awoke with a jolt. Phoebe let out a small shriek and fell backwards in shock, almost dropping the tape player. The water nymph shook violently as her body struggled against the oppressive cold.

"P-p-p-please, h-h-help me." The nymph begged through her shivering. "I'm s-s-so c-c-c-cold."

Flame Princess opened her mouth to respond, but could not find the words she needed. There was so much that she didn't understand. Why was there another victim with her? Was the nymph somehow related to her second test? Should she help her? How could she help her? The young princess's eyes darted back and forth from the nymph and the tape player. Out of the two of them, there was only one person that knew how they should proceed, and that person was the monster that trapped them in their frozen prison. After swallowing the lump in her throat, Flame Princess held up the tape player and pressed the button.

A loud crackle escaped from the speaker as the tape began to play. Through the crackling of old technology, a familiar, cold, and toneless voice spoke.

" _ **Hello Flame Princess, welcome to your second test. By surviving your first test, you have proven that you have the strength and the determination to face the anger and mistrust that has gripped your heart. Now, I offer you another chance to break the chains of anger that bind you, much like the chains that bind the woman you see before you. Her name is Simone Petrikov. She is the magic user that I sent to apprehend you. The one responsible for the untimely death of your lieutenant; Cinnamon Bun."**_

A hatch in the ceiling opened up as something was dropped into the room. It was a frost-bitten pig mask, the same pig mask that Flame Princess remembered from the night she was attacked. A second object was dropped from the ceiling. It was a golden tiara that had been broken in-half, its red gemstones cracked and shattered. Weak magical energies could still be felt radiating off of the broken tiara.

" _ **As you can see, Simone is no longer blessed with her resistance to the cold. She is just a powerless water nymph. You no doubt wish to see justice be done for the death of your lieutenant. Now it is you, who has the chance to bring his killer to justice. You alone can grant her the gift of life, before she is frozen, much like she froze your lieutenant. Behind the pipes on the back wall, you will find the key that will free her and bring you one step closer to facing your sins and earning your freedom. Can you find it within you to save another, or will you claim the key to save only yourself?"**_

A loud roar bellowed across the room as the industrial fans kicked into overdrive, turning the cold air in the freezer into a skin searing blizzard.

" _ **Make your choice."**_

* * *

Flame Princess's body burned bright as anger burned through her. Even with the cursed collar around her neck, her body burned brightly. The young princess had Cinnamon Bun's killer right in front of her, and this time with no ice magic to stop her. When was she ever going to have another chance at bringing her lieutenant's killer to justice?

Terror quickly spread across Simone's face as the gravity of her situation crashed down on her. As if to assure the nymph of her dire situation, the sound of groaning pipes rattled across the room. Suddenly, several jets of liquid coolant sprayed out of the nozzles that surrounded her. She screamed in pain as the freezing liquid covered her body only to be made worse by the brutal cold of the freezer. After what felt like an eternity, the nozzles stopped spraying the freezing nymph. Simone whimpered and cried as her body fought its hardest against the cold.

"I-I-I didn't mean to kill him." Simone stammered desperately. "I wasn't given a choice!"

"Shut up!" Flame Princess shouted fiercely. She wasn't about to let Simone lie her way out of this. "You attacked me! You attacked my kingdom! You killed my best friend! You killed Cinnamon Bun!"

The nozzles unleashed another blast of coolant, forcing more agonized screams from Simone.

"All I did was freeze him!" Simone snapped viciously through the torrent of coolant. "If you hadn't thrown that fireball at me, he might still be alive!"

"Shut up!" Phoebe screamed angrily. "Shut up, shut up, shut up!"

The flow of coolant subsided once again, leaving Simone deathly cold. Ice now clung heavily to her body, sapping more of the life from her. Weak, pitiful sobs slipped through her numb lips as her body grew colder and colder.

"Please…I'm so sorry. J-J-Jigsaw…he has my prince…"

"You're lying." Phoebe hissed bitterly as she clung to herself for warmth. "You would say anything to save yourself."

The pipes groaned again as more coolant was forced through the nozzles. Simone didn't even have the strength to scream as her body was coated in the freezing liquid. Her vision was darkening, but she could still see the young princess's angry flames fighting against the cold.

Phoebe paced back and forth across the room, never breaking eye contact with the water nymph. It was so cold that even she couldn't think straight. The bighting cold and the razor-like wind was slowly taking their toll. She thought about simply grabbing the key and leaving the water nymph to her icy fate. Everything she had ever been taught as the queen of the Fire Kingdom told her to let the nymph suffer and die in the same manner that her lieutenant had. And yet, she couldn't seem to shake a small lingering doubt that sat in the back of her mind.

What if Simone was telling the truth and Jigsaw really did have her prince? It would explain why she was so determined in her attack at the palace. Flame Princess paced back and forth across the room as she fought with her growing doubts and fears. Was she even capable of leaving another living being to die? Was Simone truly the only one to blame for Cinnamon Bun's death? All of these doubts spun and twisted angrily in her mind. If she hadn't thrown that fireball, if she had only controlled her anger…maybe none of this would be happening.

"Is this what he would have w-w-wanted you to d-d-do?" Simone asked as clearly as her chattering jaws would allow her. "W-w-would your Cinnamon Bun w-w-want you to let me die?"

Flame Princess froze as Simone's question jarred through her mind. Images of the happy, loyal, caring face of Cinnamon Bun flashed in the young princess's mind. Cinnamon Bun was always so hopeful and happy. He knew of her anger and he was the one to calm her down during her outbursts. He was the one that she would come to when the weight and strain of her royal duties became too much. He was the shoulder she cried on when the pain of Finn's betrayal came burning back up to the surface. Cinnamon Bun was more than her lieutenant, he was her best friend. He was just a sweet hearted person, incapable of cruelty. What would he think of her if he could see her right now?

Phoebe stopped her pacing and looked back towards the ice-covered Simone. Even with the burning anger that she still held within her heart, Flame Princess knew that she couldn't leave Simone to die. Cinnamon Bun would never forgive her if she did. Flame Princess heard the sound of the pipes groaning again as more coolant was pumped out of the nozzles and sprayed onto Simone's body. Flame Princess needed to get the key, and get it fast.

* * *

Half frozen and blinded by the blizzard-like winds, Flame Princess made her way to the pipes on the back wall. The pipes were covered in ice and dripping with coolant. She peered through the gaps in the line of pipes and saw the key to the locks on Simone's chains and to the exit. The young princess reached for the key, but it dangled just out of reach. Phoebe stretched her arm out as far as she could, but could not reach the keys. Her eyes darted back to Simone and felt her heart drop. Simone was now completely covered in a layer of ice. But her eyes were still moving. There was still time to save her.

Phoebe braced herself and then pressed her body against the frozen pipes and reached for the key. Steam rose off of Phoebe as her skin hissed as it seared against the ice-cold pipes. She screamed as her cheek stuck to the pipe. With one final strain, Flame Princess snatched the key off of the chain and then peeled herself off of the frozen pipe with a painful scream.

"I got the key! I got the-"

Phoebe fell silent as she turned and saw what had become of Simone. The water nymph's body was now nothing but a pillar of ice. Flame Princess had wasted too much time. She was too late.

"No, no, no, no!" The young princess shouted as she rushed over to Simone's frozen body. "I got the key, I got the key, we can both get out now!"

Phoebe reached for the lock on Simone's shackles only to find them completely frozen in thick blue ice. Desperate, Phoebe placed her hands over the chains, hoping that her heat would be enough to melt the ice. But try as she might, nothing worked. Dread and guilt began to fester in the young princess as she ran her hands over Simone's frozen figure. She was responsible for her death, and there was no denying it. She could have stopped it, but she lingered for too long.

Tears of liquid fire fell from Phoebe's cheeks only to fade in a puff of steam in the cold. She couldn't deny it now. Her anger had claimed another life. Defeated, Phoebe gave one last look at Simone's frozen body.

"I'm sorry." She muttered weakly. "I wanted justice…but not like this…"

With nothing left to be said, the young princess limped over towards the opposite end of the freezer and slid the key into the lock on the door. With a loud hiss and cracking of ice, the door opened to the familiar light of the holding room.

As the doors shut behind the young princess, the fans and coolant pipes grew silent. Simone's body glimmered in the dull blue light of the room. Perfectly frozen, forever stuck in her tomb of ice.

* * *

The sound of the door sliding open was followed by a sudden blast of frigid air. Finn and Marceline both huddled around the gravely weak Princess Bubblegum to protect her from the sudden cold. The blast of cold air subsided as the doors slide shut and locked behind the trembling and weeping Flame Princess.

No one spoke as Phoebe slowly walked into the room. They could all sense that something terrible had been done to the young princess. Though she lacked any serious injuries, they could tell that the wounds she had been inflicted with were of the heart. Her flames were burning low and she wouldn't make eye contact with anyone.

With a whimper, Phoebe slid to her knees, curled up into a ball, and began to sob loudly.

Unable to see his friend in such turmoil, Finn left Bonnie and Marcy and crept over to Phoebe's side. With caution, Finn reached his hand out and placed it on Phoebe's shoulder. Her body tensed and her flames flared brightly at Finn's touch.

"You don't have to tell us, Princess." Finn stated calmly. "You don't have to tell us anything."

Flame Princess smoldered sadly as Finn gently rubbed his hand on her shoulder. Finn's touch was so gentle, so comforting. She didn't even question how he was managing to touch her without being burned. Right now, she simply didn't wish to question anything. She simply needed the small comfort of her friend's touch.

Princess Bubblegum tapped Marceline on the shoulder and motioned for her to take her over to the younger princess. Marceline tenderly picked up Bonnie and hovered over towards Finn and Phoebe.

"Easy, don't strain yourself." Marceline stated softly. "You might tear open the staples on your arm."

Bonnie ignored Marceline's worrying and placed her hand over Finn's.

"You must be strong, Flame Princess." She stated firmly yet softly. "No matter how much you hurt, you must be strong."

Phoebe whimpered at the sound of the princess's voice. There was such a strength within her voice. It was subtle, but there was no denying it. Princess Bubblegum was speaking to her not just as a fellow prisoner, but as a fellow princess. It was moving, to say nothing else. Phoebe only wished that Bonnie had spoken to her in such a manner before they were held prisoner by an ancient killer from a time now long dead.

Marceline sighed and slid in next to Bonnie.

"We are all in this together, Phoebe." She stated in a warm tone. "As long as we have each other. Nothing will break us apart."

* * *

The earsplitting crackle of the loud speaker once again blared to life, startling the prisoners.

 _ **"Congratulations, you all have survived your second round of tests."**_ The voice of Jigsaw spoke coldly. _**"You are all one more step towards facing your sins and earning your freedom. I would advise you all to take this time to rest. For more tests and trails still stand between you, and your rehabilitation. And the games will only get harder from this point forward. For now, you all should rest. Rest, sleep, dream, and reflect."**_

Just as before, the lights in the room all shut off, leaving the four in near complete darkness.

* * *

Once again, the group all huddled around Flame Princess for warmth and light. Through the howling darkness, the sound of toiling machinery could be heard pounding as the ancient machine moved and shifted. The dull rumbling of the machine and the gentle vibrations that it sent through the floor felt strangely similar to a beating heart. The low beating began to lull the prisoners into an unwanted sleep.

Finn rested his head against Marceline's shoulder. Phoebe had curled up on the floor and was resting her head in Marceline's lap. Bonnie gently nuzzled against Marceline's neck. She planted a tiny kiss on her neck before shutting her eyes and falling asleep.

"Yeah, yeah, catch some z's while you can." Marceline stated quietly. "I'll take first watch."

As the minutes turned to hours, Marceline stood watch as the others slept. As she stood watch, a sweet, tangy smell wafted into her nose. Then she felt something wet run down her shoulder. She looked down and noticed a tiny droplet of blood had fallen off of Finn's head and had dripped down onto her shoulder. Marceline swallowed the lump that was quickly forming in her throat. Her eyes darted from Finn, to Phoebe, and then to Bonnie. They were all sleeping soundly, despite the circumstances.

 _He wouldn't know._ Marcy told herself as she stared at the crimson droplet. _Phoebe wouldn't know, and neither would Bonnie._

Without another moment of hesitation, Marceline's tongue carefully snaked out of her mouth and gently licked Finn's blood off of her shoulder. Her tongue twisted and tenderly licked another droplet off of Finn's check. The taste of blood sent tingles through Marceline's body. It was like scratching an itch that she couldn't reach. It made her feel warm, it made her feel calm, it made her feel alive.

Marceline gave Finn a tiny kiss on his forehead.

 _I'm so sorry Finn, but you are just too sweet._

* * *

The freezer had been deathly silent as the hours passed. Simone stood frozen in her pillar of ice. Suddenly, a large crack split from within the pillar of ice. Soon other, larger cracks began to split through the ice. Without warning, the pillar of ice erupted, sending huge chunks of ice flying everywhere. The cursed chains slid to the floor like silken threads.

The water nymph's eyes snapped open with a piercing white glow. She yawned and stretched her arms over her head as her blue hair grew and turned a snow-white color.

"That was fun." She said in a cool tone. "I haven't acted in so long."

Her white eyes fell to the floor and stared at the broken tiara. A vestige of her old life. The life that she gave up. The life that Jigsaw saved her from. She smiled and reached for the frost-bitten pig mask that laid next to it.

"This is all I need now." She said firmly as she held the mask up to her face.

"Well, well, well…still as dashing as ever, I see." A velvety voice spoke.

Simone smiled as she felt a familiar set of hands slip around her waist.

"Aw, did you like my little show?" she asked in a honeyed tone.

"How could I not?" her invisible suitor responded. "Seeing your body all cold and wet made my mouth water."

Simone shivered with a smile as she felt the familiar feeling of vampire fangs gently grazing against her neck.

"Come now, we can play later, you little imp. We still have work to see to." She stated firmly yet invitingly.

"As you wish, my queen." The vampire answered huskily. "And then…?"

Simone smiled and locked the young vampire in a passionate kiss.

"Then…we can play. My little king."

* * *

 **Chilling...**


	15. Chapter 15: Four Walls Build a Home

Chapter 15

A blur of color flew high above the pre-dawn sky as Jake and Lady Rainicorn made their way to the Candy Kingdom. They had spent most of the night preparing for their quest. They had packed enough food and water to last them for three or more days. They knew that if they ran out that Huntress Wizard would no doubt hunt for more food. Despite their preparation, both still felt the gnawing sense of anxiousness. This wasn't going to be like most of their adventures. This was a matter of life or death.

Jake held on tightly to Lady as she darted across the sky. BMO was held in a pouch morphed out of Jake's back. The tiny robot wanted nothing more than to find their friends as much as the others did. BMO was also the only one that could decipher any technical clues that Jigsaw might have left behind.

As the Candy Kingdom came into view, Lady and Jake saw that the others had already arrived at the rendezvous point outside of the kingdom. Huntress Wizard and Peace Master both had packs and satchels of supplies and equipment for their long travel.

"Sweet, everyone's already here!" Jake exclaimed jovially.

Lady quickly and gracefully spiraled down out of the sky and coiled on the ground.

"You guys all packed up?" Jake asked as he hopped off of Lady's back.

Huntress reached into her hunting bag and withdrew the damaged pig mask from before. She held it up to her nose and sniffed it deeply.

"Our prey's scent is mine." She stated firmly. "They will not escape."

Peace Master gave Huntress an annoyed look. He distrusted wizards for the madness that they held within and would eventually be consumed by. But for the sake of hunting and destroying a mighty evil, he would tolerate the wizard's presence.

"How about you PM?" Jake asked. "Have you told your kids about our quest?"

Peace Master averted his eye at the mention of his beloved children. It was still a sensitive topic for him.

"They are…at a relative's house." PM answered uneasily. "They will be safe there for the time being."

Peace Master then held up his charm sack out in front of him.

"All that I need is with me." He stated firmly. "No evil can hide from my ever-watchful eye and the power of my charms."

Jake was happy to see that everyone was taking the quest as seriously as they needed to. Their party had some of the best magic users and hunters in all of Ooo looking for Finn and the others. Whoever this Jigsaw was, they would find them, wherever they were.

Jake hopped back up onto Lady's back with Peace Master uneasily following him. Huntress Wizard morphed herself into a giant hawk and quickly took to the skies.

"The ruins that the tape spoke of are north east from the Candy Kingdom." Peace Master announced as he looked over his map. "As I said before, it will be at least a two-day's travel."

Lady Rainicorn smiled and coiled like a spring.

 _"I'll make it in one!"_

Suddenly, Lady sprang forward and bolted into the sky at breakneck speeds. Huntress Wizard flapped her wings and quickly caught up to Lady. Peace Master clung for dear life to Lady. Jake smiled and pointed towards the horizon.

"Don't worry guys! We're coming for ya!"

* * *

The clouds blurred past the group as they flew high in the sky. All of Ooo could be seen from such heights. Houses and trees dotted the land like tiny specks of dirt on a sea of green. But marring the luscious green grasslands were massive deep gashes in the earth. They all knew them as the tracks that the evil cloud left behind. Huntress Wizard focused her "Huntress Vision" on the large tracks.

"Our prey is mechanical in nature." She announced. "There is oil staining the mud, and the smell of metal is still heavy in the air."

"And it has about a day's head start on us." Peace Master responded bitterly. "For something so large, it seems to move rather fast."

Huntress frowned and turned her gaze back towards the monstrous tracks. As they flew closer towards the Candy Mountains, the large gashes in the ground suddenly came to a halt and were replaced by deep craters in the ground. Huntress followed the craters with her keen vision and noticed that there were several craters driven deep into the face of the mountain.

"It changed from rolling on wheels to walking on legs." She announced. "Judging by the spacing of the craters, I'd say it has six legs."

 _"So, it changed how it moves, just to make it over the mountains?"_ Lady asked. _"Why didn't it just go around them?"_

"Perhaps it is an old machine." BMO responded. "Old machines don't always make sense to non-machines."

Jake shrugged his shoulders and gave Lady a bewildered look. There was definitely something more to this cloud than they had thought.

* * *

The group soon passed over the Candy Mountains. Past the mountains was the land of the former Ice King, still as cold as ever. More craters covered the face of the icy mountains, showing that the cloud had been past there. It felt strange seeing the former Ice Kingdom after so long. It gave Jake a nostalgic feeling. It reminded him of all the adventures he and Finn had been through. Back when things were simpler. Back before the Lich had reawakened.

As the group flew over the ice-covered tops of the mountains, they were greeted by a vast flat expanse of grassless land. Huntress Wizard noticed that the craters had changed back to the deep gashes in the ground at the base of the mountain.

"It switched back to its wheeled form." She announced. "It is traveling north east. Into the Unknown Lands."

"We must be vigilant." Peace Master stated firmly. "The lands past this point are rife with dangers."

"How do you know so much about the Unknown Lands?" Jake asked curiously. "I thought they were supposed to be well, unknown."

Peace Master scowled and tugged on his bandages.

"Ever since I took part in the failed coup of the Candy Kingdom, I have been sentenced to exile. In all of her mercy, Princess Bubblegum only allowed me entry into the kingdom to see my children every other week for one day." Peace Master spoke bitterly. "While outside of the kingdom, I have continued my pursuit of all those who dabble in the dark arts. My mission has often led me into the Unknown Lands."

An uncomfortable silence fell over the group as Peace Master finished speaking. No one had expected him to give such a heavy response.

"Sorry, dude." Jake said sheepishly.

Peace Master did not respond and remained silent with his gaze focused firmly on the grey empty horizon.

* * *

Minutes turned to hours as the group flew over the grey expanse of the Unknown Lands. For miles there was nothing to be seen. No trees, no grass, and certainly no people. It was as if they had entered into one of the dead worlds. The sky was a greenish grey color, and the sun seemed to be shrouded.

Everyone was on edge, except Huntress Wizard. Her being of single-minded focus made it easier for her to ignore the unsettling environment. So long as she could see the tracks that her prey had left behind, she would be content. It helped that she was also hunting for Finn. Such an exceptional beast was worthy of her skills as a huntress. She had been yearning for a chance to hunt Finn again, and she was enjoying every moment of this glorious hunt.

Suddenly, the deep gashes in the barren ground ended. Startled and confused, Huntress Wizard flew back and hovered over where the tracks had ended. Her eyes scanned the tracks with her vision, but could not find where the tracks resumed. It was as if the clouded monstrosity simply vanished.

"The tracks end here!" she shouted towards the others. "But they do not continue. Why and how?"

"Uhhh…maybe because of that?" Jake answered as he pointed towards the horizon.

Huntress Wizard looked to where Jake was pointing and felt a wave of unease fall over her. Before them laid the sun bleached and sand blasted ruins of an ancient city.

"We must be very cautious now." Peace Master stated quietly. "There are many things hidden within this dead city. Things that have been hidden since the Mushroom War."

With newfound worry, the group descended into the ruins of the city.

* * *

There was an oppressive stillness within the ancient ruins. The air was sour and filled with dust. Wind gently whistled through the dilapidated metal skeletons of once mighty buildings. Rusted cars were buried up to their roofs in dirt and dust blown from the great wastes that surrounded the once lively city. There was no grass, no vines, not even any weeds. The twisted metal and crumbling concrete cast unnerving shadows across the sun-bleached ground.

Lady Rainicorn carefully snaked down from the sky and hovered above the long-destroyed streets. Huntress Wizard transformed back into her normal form and landed on the ground. She reached down and grabbed a handful of dirt.

"The earth is poisoned and dead here." She stated grimly. "Nothing can grow here. Nothing can live here."

Peace Master hopped off of Lady and withdrew a map from his charm sack. The rest of the group quickly gathered around him to look at the map.

"The building that the tape spoke of is close." He stated as he circled their destination on the map. "Follow me and stay alert."

As Peace Master led the group down the desolate and crumbling streets, the sense of dread they had all been feeling only grew stronger. It was as if they were walking through a graveyard. Ruined buildings and the husks of skyscrapers blocked out the horizon. Signs of the Mushroom War could be seen scattered around the city as well. Half-buried tanks and rusted out troop carriers could be seen amongst the other ruins. The silence and stillness were enveloping.

 _"It is as if the ruins are trying to pull us into them."_ Lady stated nervously.

"Such is the nature of these places." Peace Master stated in a hushed tone. "Do not let the ruins separate you."

Huntress Wizard kept her eyes sharp and her head on a swivel. The lack of sound was making her uneasy. She felt as though they were being watched by some unseen predator.

* * *

After what felt like hours, the group finally made it to the building that the tape had showed them. The Mushroom War and the eons of desolation that followed it had left the building as nothing more than a hollowed out steel and concrete husk. Sitting, half-buried in the dirt and dust was a large sign that read "Gideon Meatpacking Plant".

"Is this the place?" Jake asked Peace Master. "This looks nothin' like what the dummy showed us."

Peace Master furrowed his brow and tucked the map back into his charm sack.

"I'm sure of it." He responded firmly.

The group cautiously approached the building, unsure of what they would find. Just as they were about to walk through the remains of the doorway, Huntress Wizard stopped and signaled for the group to step back. A single arrow levitated out of her quiver, and with a point of her finger, the arrow flew through the air. There was a loud bang and flash as the arrow flew under the doorway.

"Now we can go in." She stated calmly.

As the group entered through the doorway, they saw what Huntress Wizard had stopped them for. Fastened over and along the doorway were several still smoking shotguns. They had all been set to fire by a trip wire. Huntress had spotted the wire, and used an arrow to trigger the trap from a safe distance.

"Good eyes." Peace Master stated with a weary smile.

The insides of the building were just as bad as the outsides. Dust and debris covered the concrete floors. But out of the dirt and rubble, laid something familiar to the group. Something that filled them with dread. Sitting on the ground, tangled in razor wire, was Finn's signature hat. Sitting alongside the hat were the tattered remains of Princess Bubblegum's nightdress, Marceline's fangs, and Flame Princess's tiara.

"No, no, no!" Jake exclaimed as he rushed over to the tattered hat. As he picked the hat up, a single tape fell to the floor. BMO was quick to pick up the tape and hold it up for the group to see.

"Look, another tape!" the small robot exclaimed.

After taking a moment to collect himself, Jake looked back towards the group and then down to BMO.

"Play it BMO."

BMO nervously placed the tape into their tape slot. The group watched anxiously as BMO processed the tape. After a moment of silence, BMO's screen flickered to white. Just like the tapes before, the image of the white-faced dummy appeared on the screen. Slowly, the dummy's head turned towards the screen.

 _ **"Congratulations, you have found the next piece of the puzzle and are now one step closer to finding your friends. The gifts I have left behind for you is a sign that your friends have survived my games thus far. But they still have many left before they can be rehabilitated. Before they can earn their freedom, they must look inward and dig deep inside of themselves and face the sickness that is afflicting them."**_

Suddenly, the screen flickered and cut to static. Over the static, and new voice spoke. The audio was aged and garbled.

 _"Day two hundred. We are running out of food and water. The voice over the intercom keeps reminding us of the time we are losing, and keeps telling us to make a choice. 'Live, or die'. The blast doors won't open, and the other cells are reporting life support failures. We need to get out and shut down the dimensional rift reactor before it collapses."_

As the tape played, Huntress Wizard began to scan their surroundings. Something felt off, and she was going to find what it was. She noticed a stray handprint in the dust and knelt down to inspect it. As she placed her hand over the handprint, a loud metallic groan echoed throughout the building. The ground began to tremble beneath them. Suddenly, a large slab of stone moved and revealed a flight of stairs that led deep underground. With BMO's screen still filled with static, Jake, Lady, and Peace Master all followed Huntress down the flight of stairs into the darkness.

Peace Master and Huntress Wizard used their magic to illuminate the way down the stairs. As they reached the bottom of the stairs, they came to a long corridor lined with metal doors and clouded windows. Lady peered inside one of the windows and let out a small gasp.

 _"There are skeletons in those rooms!"_ she exclaimed as she coiled around Jake.

"There are more in this one as well." Peace Master stated grimly.

"What was this place?" Jake asked. "Some kind of pre-mushroom war bunker?"

BMO's speakers crackled as the tape began to play again.

 _"Day two hundred and ten. We ran out of food. We will run out of water tomorrow. The voice on the intercom keeps telling us to make a choice whether we live or die. How can we make that choice when we can't even get out of our cell? More and more cells have stopped reporting in. Why haven't the safety protocols gone into effect? Why is the automated maintenance system not responding to the shutdown commands? None of this makes any sense!"_

The corridor came to an abrupt end. Before the group was a massive underground chasm that spanned for miles. But the chasm did not look naturally formed, nor did it look industrial. It looked as though a large section of the earth simply disappeared, leaving a perfect spherical cavern in its absence.

BMO's speakers crackled once again as the tape resumed.

 _"Day…what does it matter? I finally get it. I finally understand. The voice on the intercom wasn't speaking to us. It was speaking to the automated maintenance system. The automated maintenance system has become self-aware. The voice wasn't asking us to choose to live or die. It was asking the automated maintenance system to choose whether it lives or dies. The machine knew that letting us out would mean that we would shut down the dimensional rift reactor, and deactivate it in the process; killing it. The machine chose to live, which meant letting us die. It doesn't matter now. Soon, the dimensional rift reactor will-"_

The tape suddenly ended and with a loud crackle of static, the image of the dummy reappeared.

 _ **"You see what one can find, if they simply dig deep enough?**_ " the dummy spoke coldly. _**"Sometimes, the most vexing of problems can be solved by looking at it from a different perspective. Things never truly disappear; they are simply moved to another place. Follow my trail, and you will find the next piece of the puzzle. Or you can abandon your pursuit and trust that your friends have what it takes to survive. The choice is yours."**_

BMO's screen flickered and went black as the tape was ejected out of their body.

* * *

The group stood in silence as they processed what had been revealed to them. Whoever, or whatever this "Jigsaw" was, it was clear to them now that they were far older than they had imagined. It had been doing this type of sick game for eons. It needed to be found, it needed to be stopped.

"Looking from a different perspective…moved to another place…" Peace Master muttered to himself thoughtfully.

An idea suddenly formed. A crazy idea, but an idea none the less. Peace Master reached into his charm sack and began looking through it.

"The trail ended right outside of the city, correct?" he asked as he rummaged around in his charm sack.

"Correct, it's like the trail simply disappeared." Huntress answered. "What are you suggesting?"

"What if the trail didn't end there? What if it was simply moved to another place?" Peace Master responded. He then withdrew a large green eyeball from his sack and held it out in front of him.

"What if the trail continues in another parallel realm?" he asked with an almost zealous fervor in his voice. "What if our target can travel from our world to another? With this Wizard's eye, I'll be able to see where the machine's trail leads. In this realm, or any other!"

Jake looked back to Lady with an unsure expression.

 _"Crazier things have happened in Ooo."_ She responded.

Jake nodded and looked back to the group.

"Alright everyone, that's the plan." He announced. "Let's bounce and get back outside. Then PM can work his magic."

Everyone grabbed ahold of Lady before she bolted out of the underground tunnel, out of the ruins, and up into the sky. Once they were high enough, Peace Master raised the Wizard's eye over his forehead. He muttered a few inaudible incantations before his eyes snapped open, bright green and glowing.

"Yes, yes I can see the tracks!" he shouted ecstatically. "The tracks continue north east of the city! No evil can hide from me, Peace Master!"

"Alright everyone, hold on tight!" Jake shouted as Lady reared back like a coiling spring. "Let's go save our friends!"

With a blur of color and a sonic boom, Lady tore through the sky towards the horizon.

* * *

The metal armed figure stood and looked through one of the few windows out onto the horizon. Through the smoke they could see the sun rising over what would have been a very beautiful day. They felt a small sadness in their heart. Past memories came to mind. Memories of friends, family, love, and loss.

"I had almost forgotten what it looked like." Simone spoke softly as she approached from behind. "Still as beautiful as ever."

The hooded figure remained silent as they looked through the window.

"If you want to, you can always go back." Simone stated in a soft yet cold tone. "You could leave all of this and go back. I mean, who knows when we will be back here again."

The figure placed their hand over Simone's shoulder and gently pushed her aside.

"We both know this world holds nothing for us anymore." They stated firmly. "My place is here, with Jigsaw. You of all people should know that."

Simone scowled as the figure walked away. Ice began to creep across the floor from where Simone stood. Her scowl turned into a cruel smile.

"Just remember who was here first, little bunny." She hissed venomously. "I will always be the first and never the last."


	16. Chapter 16: The Carousel

Chapter 16

* * *

Bonnibel groaned as she stirred from her slumber. The floor felt harder and colder than it had before.

"Marcy, are you there?" she asked as she rubbed the sleep from her eyes. Still drowsy, Bonnibel felt around the floor blindly for the vampire. But it became very clear to her very quickly that she was all alone. Once again, Jigsaw had separated the princess from her friends. Princess Bubblegum now found herself in a long dark hallway.

"Again?!" she exclaimed in disbelief. "How?!"

Princess Bubblegum's mind began to race as she thought of multiple possible scenario's for how Jigsaw could have separated her from her friends. There was no way they could have been dragged away if they were simply asleep.

"How are they doing it?" Bonnibel asked herself as she racked her brain for answers. "Magic, toxins, magic toxins?"

A jolt of pain rippled through her reattached arm, dragging her from her thoughts. She hissed in pain as her fingers flexed and coiled. The nerves were still damaged from the trauma.

As Bonnibel tried to massage the pain out of her arm, she felt something squirming under her feet. She looked down and found that several maggots were wriggling on the ground. She quickly noticed that the maggots formed a trail down the hallway. She knew that whatever waited for her at the end of the trail was another creation of the rotten pig-masked giant that had kidnapped her.

"Who is that giant?" Bonnibel asked herself as she stepped over the maggots. "Why is it so obsessed with me?"

She had to know the answer. But she knew that getting the answers to her questions would mean more pain and loss. With no other options, the princess cautiously made her way down the dark hallway towards whatever madness had been created for her.

* * *

As the princess carefully walked down the dark hallway, she began to hear what sounded like voices. She stopped and listened. They were faint and muffled, but she could hear several voices coming from the end of the hallway. There were more people trapped within the depths of the machine. She had to find them and release them.

The walls of the hallway began to narrow as the princess slowly approached its end. The hallway led her to a large metal door with a red spiral painted on it. Through the door, the princess could hear several voices taking over each other.

"Shut up, Dextrose! You have no idea what you're talking about!"

"Neither do you! So, stop talking down to me!"

"Everyone, please remain calm. I'm certain we can think of a way out of this."

Princess Bubblegum's heart leaped at the sound of the last voice. It was Peppermint Butler's voice. She was so happy to know that he was with her, but her happiness quickly turned into dread. Yes, he was with her, but that meant that he was trapped in this sick game just like she was.

Bonnibel pressed her ear up against the metal door and listened.

"Peppermint Butler, are you in there?!"

"Princess, is that you?!" Peppermint Butler exclaimed.

"The Princess?"

"She's here?"

"Thank goodness!"

"Princess…"

Bonnibel could hear the surprise in the voices of her subjects. They probably didn't expect her to be the one that came to their rescue. She had to force herself to at least sound calm. She didn't want to panic them. But deep down she knew that there a great cause to be panicked. They didn't know how much danger they were in, and neither did she.

"Yes, its me, Pepper." Bonnie answered as calmly as she could. "Who's in there with you?"

"Ms. Lollipop, Cherry Cream Soda-"

"We're in her too, Princess!" the voice of the old Captain Banana Guard shouted, cutting off Peppermint Butler. "Me, one of your lab assistances, Dr. Dextrose, one of the banana guards, and some weirdo."

"Yeah, they're all gooey and gross!" Dr. Dextrose exclaimed.

Princess Bubblegum didn't have time to question what her subjects were shouting at her. She needed to know what kind of trap they were stuck in.

"What can you see?" she asked nervously.

"We can't see anything, your majesty." Cherry Cream Soda answered. "It's pitch-black in here."

Bonnibel could hear the distinct sound of machinery moving. The sound only filled the princess with more dread.

"What's that sound?" she asked.

"I am not sure, Princess." Peppermint Butler answered. "It's something we are all chained to. It seems to be spinning."

"Please, get us out of here!" Dr. Dextrose shouted, jarring the frightened princess.

Bonnibel shook her head and swallowed the bile that was rising in her stomach. There was no way to avoid what was next. If she was to win her game, she would have to face whatever awaited her through the painted metal doors. After taking several breaths, Princess Bubblegum placed her hands on the metal doors and pushed them open.

The moment the doors swung open; a loud buzzer blared through the room. Several spinning red emergency lights illuminated the room with a red glow. A single industrial light snapped to life, shinning its harsh light down onto the center of the room. Princess Bubblegum's jaw dropped as she stared at what stood before her. The center of the room was encircled by a massive metal cage. In the center of the cage were eight of her subjects. Each of them was chained to a metal carousel, no different then one might see at a playground. All eight subjects were forced facing forward. She could see the fear in their eyes so clearly as she staggered towards the cage.

All of her subjects were shouting over each other in a confused cacophony of terror. This was nothing like her last game. This felt much more personal. Somehow, the princess knew that not all of her subjects would be walking away from this. But she would do whatever she could to save as many as she could.

"Princess, what is this?!" a terrified Lollipop girl asked.

Bonnie gripped metal of the cage as hard as she could as anger spread through her veins. How dare they! How dare Jigsaw bring her loyal subjects into this sick game! They did nothing to deserve being here.

"It's a game…" Bonnie answered somberly as the chill of dread crept down her spine.

The princess's answer was met with confusion and panic. Each of her eight subjects once again began to argue and shout.

A loud static split through the air as an old television snapped awake. Silence fell over the room as the ghostly face of the dummy appeared on the screen. Slowly, the dummy turned and faced the screen.

 _ **"Hello, Bonniebel. Before you are eight of your loyal subjects. They willingly follow you, and for that you reward them. Yet only three of the eight you see before you know the truth about the games you play in the name of science. The science of creating life. How many of them have you replaced over the years? And how many have you failed to create? How many have you left unfinished?"**_

"Princess, what are they talking about?!" a terrified Lollypop Girl asked.

The princess opened her mouth but could not find the words she needed. Her eyes lingered on one of the eight victims. It was a pitiful mess of candy, missing both its legs and one of its arms. Its body looked mushy and doughy, like gooey butter cake. Its beady black eyes locked with hers and it smiled goofily at her.

"Princess…" it slurred.

 _ **"Out of every batch of candy people you create, three are left unfinished. The unfinished are then kept hidden from the rest of your subjects, or in some cases, destroyed. And with them gone, your failures remain hidden. Now we will apply that number to those you see before you."**_

 _Destroyed?! What do they mean, destroyed?_ Princess Bubblegum asked herself. _I never destroyed any of the unfinished. I only kept them hidden to protect them and the other candy people!_

Peppermint Butler, Dr. Dextrose, and the lab assistant all gave her guilty looks. They knew what Jigsaw spoke of, for they had a hand in it.

"What did you three do?" Bonnie asked in an accusing tone. "What have you not been telling me?"

A buzzer blared as another red light bulb flashed, illuminating a metal cage with two red buttons placed inside. Princess Bubblegum's eyes widened in horror as she saw what the box's cables connected to. Mounted on the floor was a shotgun with what looked like an automated firing mechanism made from a piston and a bike pedal.

 _ **"Eight ride the carousel, but only three can get off. The decision of who survives falls upon you, princess. But know that the mounted gun will continue to fire until all eight rounds are spent. And if no decision is made on your part, all eight will perish."**_

Princess Bubblegum could not believe what she was hearing. How could they make her do this? The chained subjects were now panicking as they heard the rules of the game. It was all too much to process.

 _ **"To offer the three reprieves you must press both buttons in the box before you. However, in doing so you will give a sacrifice of your own. Three can live, five will die. Your decisions symbolized by the blood on your hands."**_

The television flickered before turning off. Another loud buzzer blared, signaling that the game had begun.

* * *

"Princess, you have to get us out of here!"

"Princess, please, you have to save us!"

"Everyone, please, don't make this harder than it needs to be."

"Princess…"

Princess Bubblegum's mind was racing as she tried to process everything that was happening. But before she could make sense of anything, the sound of the buzzer pulled her from her thoughts and threw her back into the horrible present. With a low groan, the carousel began to slow. At the rate it was slowing, the first victim would be the young banana guard.

"Princess, do not listen to the man on the tv." The young guard ordered. "The Candy Kingdom does not negotiate with terrorist."

The carousel lurched to halt, placing the young guard in front of the shotgun. A buzzer blared as the red light on the caged box flashed. A piston hissed as it loaded the first shell into the firing chamber. Princess Bubblegum looked into the box before shakily placing her left hand into the box.

"Follow the policy, princess."

A loud clicking sounded as the bike pedal cycled.

"Follow the policy."

Bonnie shut her eyes as she pressed both of the buttons at once. Or, so she thought. She opened her eyes once she realized what was wrong. The nerves in her arm were still heavily damaged from its amputation and reattachment. Even though she was telling her hand to press the buttons, her arm would not respond. She realized this all too late.

"Princess, follow the-"

A deafening bang tore through the air as buckshot ripped through the young guard's body, tearing it to shreds and splattering banana cream all over the people chained behind him. Screams and shouts erupted as what was left of his torso slumped limply against his chains. With a groan, the carousel began to cycle once again.

Princess Bubblegum sobbed and slammed her numb hand against the caged box. Tears rolled down her face as raw, painful emotions stormed through her mind.

"What the flip!"

"Oh, my glob!"

"Princess, you need me!" the lab assistant shouted. "I know more about your experiments than any of the others! You can't let me die!"

"Don't listen to him Princess! Dr. Dextrose shouted. "I know more about your research than him!"

"Both of you, be quiet!" Peppermint Butler snapped. "Do not make this harder for her."

"Princess…" Butter Cake slurred.

The groaning of machinery filled the room as the carousel began to slow once again. The next victim would be Cherry Cream Soda.

"Princess, please, Dirt Beer needs me!" she begged. "He hasn't been right ever since he came back to life. He needs me to take care of him! Please…"

The carousel lurched to a stop. Bonnie flinched as the buzzer blared. Cherry Cream screamed as the piston loaded the next shell into the firing chamber.

"Princess, please!"

Bonnie stared at Cherry Cream for a moment. The princess could tell that she was not begging for her own life alone. She had someone that needed her, someone who relied on her. She knew that Dirt Beer Guy had not been the same person he was before his death. He was getting slower, and more forgetful. Cherry Cream Soda was the only person that made him feel normal. She couldn't take that away from either of them.

The clicking of the bike pedal pulled the princess from her thoughts. Bonnie swallowed the lump in her throat and placed her right hand into the box. As she pressed down on both buttons, a large metal spike was driven down into her hand. Bonnie screamed in pain, but she refused to release the buttons. A hiss of hydraulics sounded as the mounted shotgun rose to an upright position.

A flash and earsplitting bang tore through the room as the shotgun fired above Cherry Cream's head. She had been saved. She would live. Princess Bubblegum sobbed as she released the buttons. As she did, the spike retracted back into the top of the box. Sugary syrup seeped out of Bonnie's hand as she pulled it out of the box and held it tightly.

"Thank you, Princess!" Cherry Cream exclaimed as tears of both joy and guilt poured down her face. Thank you!"

With a groan, the carousel began to cycle again, now with six players left in the game.

* * *

"Why?!" the lab assistant shouted in disbelief. "Why her?! She doesn't know anything about your research!"

"Princess, please. I'll do anything you want, please don't let me die!" Lollipop Girl begged desperately.

"Princess, I am the one who should live." Captain Banana Guard stated firmly. "Your Banana guards need my leadership."

"Princess…" Butter Cake slurred, seemingly unaware of what was happening around them.

"Shut up you half-finished reject!" Dr. Dextrose snapped angrily. "You need me, Princess!"

"All of you, stop this!" Peppermint Butler ordered. "The Princess's decision is her own. Do not try to persuade her."

The carousel began to slow again. This time, it was the lab assistant's turn.

"Princess, you need me!" the assistant begged. "Without me, your research would have gone nowhere!"

The carousel lurched to a stop, the piston loaded the next shell into the firing chamber, and the pedal began to click towards the trigger.

"Princess, wake up!" the assistant begged.

Bonnie looked through the metal cage with tears in her eyes and an unbearable pain in her heart. What lesson was this game supposed to teach her? She knew that she was guilty of messing with her subject's lives, but it was necessary to maintain her kingdom. She wasn't proud of it, but it had to be done. But that never stopped her from loving her creations. She loved every one of her candy people. How was killing them going to teach her anything?

"Princess, please!" the assistant begged in terror as the pedal clicked closer towards the trigger. "Don't let me die!"

Bonnie sobbed and shut her eyes as tight as she could. Despite her love for her creations, she could not bring herself to press the button. It tore her apart knowing that she was sentencing one of her subjects to death.

"PRINCESS PLEASE!"

Once again, the shotgun fired, blowing a hole through the lab assistant's body.

"OH, MY GLOB!"

"NO!"

"PRINCESS, PLEASE!"

Once again, the carousel began to cycle, now with only five players left.

* * *

"Okay, okay, look, I am on your side, Princess." Dr. Dextrose insisted. "You can trust me."

"Oh, please, he's been stealing from your coffers for years!" Capitan Banana Guard shouted angrily. "He'll stab you in the back when you're not looking!"

"Princess…" Butter Cake slurred with a small amount of worry on its face.

"I'll do anything you want me to do, just please don't let me die!" Lollipop Girl begged as she pulled against her chains.

Much to everyone's horror, the carousel began to slow.

Princess Bubblegum's eyes widened as the next victim cycled before her.

"Well, Princess, this is most unfortunate." Peppermint Butler stated calmly as the carousel halted. "It appears that it is my turn."

The piston hissed as the shell was loaded into the gun. The pedal clicked as it cycled towards the trigger.

"I will not beg for my life, Princess." Peppermint Butler stated firmly. "Whatever your decision is, I will accept it. It had been an honor serving at your side."

"Pep…" Bonnie muttered weakly.

The two of them had been through so much together. He had been with her since the founding days of the Candy Kingdom. No matter what she did or said, Peppermint Butler was always there by her side. He was more than a butler; he was one of her closest friends in all of Ooo. She couldn't let him die.

Bonnie placed her hand into the box and pressed both of the buttons. She screamed as the spike was driven down into her hand. She bared her teeth as the barrel of the shotgun rose towards the ceiling. Again, the shotgun fired, sending a shock wave of pure terror through the remaining subjects. With a hiss of pain, Bonnie released the buttons and withdrew her hand from the box. The hole in her hand was so large that she could almost see through it.

"Thank you, princess." Peppermint Butler said as he bowed his head.

Again, the carousel began its terrible cycle, now with only four players left.

* * *

"Of course, you let him live! He is your butler!" Dr. Dextrose shouted bitterly.

"Princess...?" Butter Cake slurred, now with fear creeping across its face.

"Think about your guards, princess!" Captain Banana Guard shouted. "They need my leadership!"

"Please, I don't wanna die here!" Lollipop Girl cried as tears and mucus ran down her face.

Princess Bubblegum stared vacantly down at the button box as the carousel cycled. Her subject's pleas and bickering overlapped in a cacophony of madness. Through all the noise, Bonnie could swear that she could hear joyful carnival music. The grief and the pain were too much for her. Her body and mind quickly grew numb to everything around her. She became so numb that she didn't even flinch once the carousel slowed and stopped.

"Princess…?" Butter Cake slurred nervously as they were brought before the shotgun.

Bonnie looked at the unfinished creature before her. It pained her to admit it, but she had no memory of its creation. Had she become so wrapped up in her science that she had forgotten about it? Was she that awful of a creator? Was she that awful of a princess? Was that the purpose of this game? To show her how awful a person she was? Could it be that simple?

The piston sounded as it loaded the shell into the firing chamber. The pedal clicked as it cycled towards the trigger.

"Princess?" Butter Cake asked with a confused look on its face. The unfinished creation did not understand what was happening, and the princess knew this.

Pain burned in the Princess's heart as the pedal cycled closer towards the trigger. This was all her fault. All of this was her fault. If she had been a better princess, maybe none of this would be happening.

"Close your eyes…" Bonnie softly ordered to her unfinished creation. "It will be over soon…"

"Princess?" Butter Cake asked again, still not understanding.

Finally, the pieces fell into place for the poor gooey creature. It all suddenly made sense. She wasn't going to save them. She was going to let them die. Its eyes darted from the shotgun back to the princess as terror took hold and the pedal reached the trigger.

"PRINCESS-"

With a flash of the muzzle and deafening bang, green ooze splatter across the room as buckshot tore through Butter Cake's body. With a sad sounding gurgle, its body slumped forward lifeless. Bonnie sobbed as the carousel began to cycle again. Now, there were only three players left.

* * *

The sound of her subject's pleaded and fighting once again were drowned out by the sound of carnival music. Bonnie knew that there really was no music. Her mind was beginning to slip and she knew it. She just wanted it all to be over.

The earsplitting bang of the shotgun firing ripped her out of her haze. Before her was the lifeless body of the old Captain Banana Guard. Guilt tore through her heart like a bullet at her blunder. She had been so caught up in her own haze that she had somehow forgotten where she was. Now there were only two players left.

The carousel moved to a slow crawl as it cycled the remaining players.

"Princess, you can trust me!" Dr. Dextrose assured desperately. "I'd never lie to you!"

"Princess, please! I'm so scared! I don't wanna die!" Lollipop Girl sobbed messily. "Please, please save me!"

"Don't listen to her, you need me!"

"Please, I'm begging you!"

Machinery groaned as the carousel slowed to a stop. It was now Lollipop Girl's turn.

She shrieked as the piston loaded the shell into the chamber.

"PRINCESS, PRINCESS PLEASE!" she screamed as loudly as she could. "PLEASE DON'T LET ME DIE!"

She screamed as the petal cycled towards the trigger.

"I'LL DO ANYTHING!"

Bonnie couldn't stand it. The screaming, the pleading, the death, she just wanted it to end. With her head hug low, Bonnie placed her hand into the box and pressed the buttons. She hardly even flinched when the spike was driven into her hand. Slowly, the barrel of the shotgun was aimed towards the ceiling. With a flash and bang, the shotgun fired into the air, signaling that Lollipop Girl would live. But it also signaled that Dr. Dextrose's fate was sealed.

"Thank you, thank you thank you thank you!" Lollipop sobbed hysterically as tears of joy and guilt ran down her face.

The buzzer sounded again, and the red light on the box went out, signaling that no more could be saved. Once again, the carousel began to cycle, one last time.

* * *

Anger and betrayal burned in Dr. Dextrose's heart. That was it, he was going to die.

"Well that's it, isn't it?!" he shouted angrily. "It's over! You bitch! You spineless, pussy-whipped royal bitch!"

"Stop it…" Cherry Cream Soda begged weakly.

"That's all it takes, isn't it?! A pretty face says one thing, and it's all over! Well, you know what, Bonnibel? Your kingdom is bullshit! Your science is bullshit! You're bullshit!"

Every word that Dextrose spat at her tore through Bonnie's heart like a bullet. She did not blame him or resent him for any of it. She had failed him.

"Well you listen to me you little bitch!" tears rolled down Dextrose's face as he inched closer towards the shotgun. "I did everything for you…"

The piston hissed as it loaded the last shell into the firing chamber. The clicking of the pedal echoed across the room as it cycled towards the trigger. The princess could not watch. She had seen too much death and despair.

"Look at me!" Dextrose screamed as loud as he could. "When you're killing me, you look at me!"

Bonnie opened her eyes and stared at Dextrose. He looked at her with nothing but pure fear and sadness in his eyes.

"I'm sorry…" Bonnie whimpered.

The shotgun spoke for the last time, echoing its song of death throughout the room. Chunks of candy and syrup splattered across the room, coating the survivors. Finally, the carousel stopped spinning. The game was over.

* * *

The sound of a door hissing open, hardly even registered in Bonnie's mind. With empty glassy eyes, the princess limped towards the open door. She didn't even hear the voices of her subjects. She, for most part was completely checked out and running on autopilot. Only once she was through the doorway did she awaken. The door slid shut behind her and locked. Bonnie found herself back in the holding chamber.

She was alone. There was no Finn, no Marceline, and no Phoebe waiting for her this time. Finally, all the pain, the dread, and the sadness that the princess had been holding back crashed down over her like an avalanche. She screamed a long, soul wrenching scream as she fell to her knees. Everything hurt; her body, her mind, her heart, everything.

"THEY DIDN'T DO ANYTHING TO YOU!" she screamed furiously. "WHY DID YOU MAKE ME DO THIS?!"

Her screams were met with silence. No answer would be given.

Bonnie hugged herself and curled up on the cold floor. She was so tired, and filled with despair.

At that moment, Bonnie wished that she was dead.

* * *

Peppermint Butler struggled against his chains as he tried to use his dark magic to escape. But much like his earlier attempts, this one too had failed. Something was blocking or draining his magic. Despite everything, he was truly happy to know that the princess was still alive. He just needed to find a way to break free.

Over the sound of Cherry Cream Soda and Lollipop Girl's soft sobs, the sound of chains rattling could be heard. Peppermint Butler strained his short body to see who was rattling their chains. His jaw dropped in absolute disbelief at what he saw. With one mighty tug of their chains, the body of Butter Cake fell to the floor.

With a low growl, the unfinished creation propped itself off the floor with its arm. A flash of metal gleamed in the dull red light of the room as a mass of springs and pistons slithered out from beneath the carousel and attached itself to Butter Cake's back.

The three survivors watched in awe and horror as the mass of metal slowly began to slide and raise the unfinished creature off of the floor. While the device was spreading across his body, Butter Cake dug his fingers into his skin and ripped off a bullet proof vest hidden beneath his sludge. On the back of the vest were several packets of green slime rigged to burst. Butter Cake held the vest in front of Peppermint Butler as if to mock him.

The sound of clicking locks and spinning gears flooded the room as the metallic nest locked around Butter Cake to form a skeleton. He towered over the survivors at a staggering seven feet tall. He stomped over to where the shotgun was mounted and reached behind it.  
From behind the mount, he withdrew a long black robe and a rotting maggot filled pig mask.

Peppermint Butler could not believe what he was seeing. The unfinished creation that should have been no smarter than an under baked cinnamon roll had orchestrated all of this? He refused to believe that. It made no sense.

Butter Cake snorted as he stomped towards the cage and ripped the bars open. He felt so happy that his game had worked. He had tricked the very person that was responsible for his all of his suffering. The one that tossed him from the Candy Kingdom. The one that made him do the things that he did. The one that made him hurt the people he hurt. Peppermint Butler.

"Good bye, Pepper…" he growled as he pulled a hidden lever.

The floor beneath the carousel suddenly opened and dropped the three survivors into a howling abyss. With a snort, Butter Cake opened the door and stepped out into the hallway, leaving the room dark and empty.

* * *

The feeling of satisfaction faded and was replaced with a bitter sad feeling. Princess Bubblegum did not remember him. Not even in the slightest. He had hoped that she would have at least remembered his face, what was left of it. But he wasn't angry, not anymore.

Princess Bubblegum was not the one who helped him, she was not the one that rebuilt him, she was not the one that he was loyal to.

He didn't need a princess. He had Jigsaw and his games. And there were still games left to be played.

* * *

 **Work and tornadoes wont stop me!**


	17. Chapter 17: Stuck Together

Chapter 17

* * *

Marceline's eyes flickered open as a wave of nausea rousted her from her unconsciousness. Her body felt cold and stiff. The last thing she remembered was keeping watch as the others slept. Marcy's numbness was quickly replaced with a sharp searing pain in her stomach. Her eyes widened in terror as she stared down at her body. Several long metal spikes had been driven through her chest, arms, and her legs, pinning her in place. A black leather harness was strapped tightly around her waist, binding her to a thick metal column.

Marceline's eyes darted around as she took in her surroundings. The room she was trapped in was small and cramped. The walls were covered in x-rays and medical charts. The x-rays had points marked out on them. Each mark represented one of the many spikes.

The medical charts confused Marceline as none of the marks shown on the x-rays were placed in fatal locations on her body. She was a vampire, and these wounds would not be enough to kill a vampire. That is what she thought, at least until she noticed that one of the spikes was not completely metal. The spike that was jutting out of her chest was tipped with wood. Luckily, so long as the wooden end of the spike stayed out of her chest, she would survive.

"That's not good." Marceline muttered bleakly. "I guess things could be worse though."

Marceline's ears perked at the sound of a low mumbling coming from behind her. She quickly realized that she was not the only victim in this game.

"Oh, glob, my head is killing me." A surprisingly familiar voice groaned.

"Ash?!" Marceline asked in disbelief. "Ash, is that you?!"

"Marcy?" the young wizard asked groggily. "Where am-"

Ash screamed in terror as he looked down and saw the metal spikes jutting through his body.

"What is this?!" he screamed in a mixture of fear and pain. "What's happening?!"

Marceline didn't even know how to explain the situation to Ash. It all sounded too crazy to be real. But the pain they were both feeling proved to them that it was very, very real.

With fear coursing through his body, Ash felt a something weighing down on his wrist. Ash strained his neck as much as the spikes would allow him to and found that a tape player was chained to his wrist.

"I-I found something!" Ash exclaimed as he worked the player into his hand. "It's some kind of-"

"Tape player?" Marceline asked grimly, cutting Ash off. "No point in waiting. Play it."

With trembling hands, Ash pressed the button and the tape began to play.

The small speaker of the player crackled with static before a familiar voice spoke.

" _ **The human body is a fascinating organism. It can withstand the most brutal of injuries…and yet repair itself miraculously. The same can be said for vampires, and to an extent, wizards as well. But you both know this all too well. Throughout your long, long lives, how many how many flesh wounds have you both endured? How many flesh wounds have you caused? How many wounds have you inflicted upon each other, physically or emotionally? With time, the wounds have healed, but your pain has not. Today, I empower you both to take control of your lives. Can you disconnect from the one that has brought so much pain? With time, the wounds will heal. But for one of you, your wounds will not. Remove the ties that bind you…or starve and bleed to death from your inactivity. The choice is yours."**_

With a loud crackle, the tape player fell silent.

A deathly silence filled the room as the two processed what they had been told. Marceline's eyes darted in every direction as she tried to look for a way out or a clue on how to escape. She may have hated Ash's guts, but she didn't want to kill him. He was as much of a victim as she was in this twisted game. There had to be a way that both of them could escape, she just had to find it.

Marceline took a moment to study the medical charts that were plastered all over the room. She was hoping that there would be some kind of hidden message within the charts and graphs. But before she could begin to formulate a plan, a sharp pain ripped through her body. The spike that was sticking through her stomach was being pulled through her from the other side. Ash was pulling out the spike to free himself.

"Ash, what are you doing?!" Marceline shouted angrily as she grabbed the spike with her hands.

"What does it look like?!" Ash snapped angrily. "I'm not about to die here!"

Marceline bared her teeth as she tried to keep hold of the metal spike. Inch by inch, it was slowly being pulled through her.

"If we work together, there a chance we can both get out of this!" Marceline growled as she held the spike firmly. "Neither of us have to die!"

"Sorry, babe. But I'm not taking that chance." Ash responded coldly.

Ash suddenly lurched and ripped the spike out of himself. Marceline and Ash both screamed in pain as the spike fell to the floor with a loud clang.

"Ash, don't be stupid!" Marceline shouted angrily. "You're only going to end up killing yourself!"

Marceline hissed as Ash began to pull out another spike. The spike was pierced through the two's shoulders. Ash grunted and whimpered as he tried to pull the spike out. Marceline's hands shook as she tried to keep Ash from pulling out the spike.

"Ash, please, I begging you!" Marceline exclaimed. "Don't make me kill you!"

Marceline screamed as Ash suddenly ripped the spike out of them. Blood gushed from Ash's shoulder as the spike fell to the floor.

"Begging? That's not like you, Mar-mar." Ash stated with a tremble in his voice.

A part of him knew that he was dooming himself, but the other part of him really wanted to make Marceline suffer.

He looked down at the several spike tips that still jutted out of his body. He then looked up at the medical charts that covered the room. Each of the charts showed that the spikes had been driven through a vital part of his body. None of the charts showed anything of Marceline. The warmth left his body as he quickly realized the twisted truth behind this game.

It was rigged from the start.

Ash felt a searing pain as one of the spikes was quickly ripped out. With a loud clang, the spike was tossed to the floor. Blood bubbled and seeped down Ash's leg as the wound opened and bled.

Marceline let out a ragged growl as she gripped another spike.

"Fine, if you won't listen, then you've given me no choice!" she hissed as she began to twist and pull the spike out of her right shoulder.

Ash grabbed the spike and pulled as hard as he could to keep Marcy from removing it. Despite his best efforts, Marcy was simply too strong for him. With a snarl, Marceline ripped the spike out of her shoulder and tossed it to the ground.

"It didn't have to be this way, you idiot!" she screamed as she grabbed another spike. "We could have worked together!"

Again, Marceline pulled the spike out of the two of them and tossed it to the floor. The light pitter-patter of blood hitting the floor could be heard as Ash began to bleed out.

"I didn't want to do this, Ash!" Marceline snarled between ragged breaths. "None of it!"

Marceline hung her head as she looked down at the spikes that were still jutting out of her body. The smell of Ash's blood was heavy in the air. The metallic stench was making her dizzy. The cursed collar on her neck felt like it weighed a ton. Her tongue hung from her mouth as she tried to catch her breath.

The fog in her head was cleared by a sudden pain in her chest. Marceline looked down and saw the spike in her chest slowly sinking into her. Marcy gasped and grabbed the spike with both hands. The wooden tip of the spike was inching closer and closer to her heart.

"If I'm going out, I'm taking you with me!" Ash exclaimed as he pulled hard on his end of the spike.

With a sudden movement, Ash pulled the spike out even further; bringing the wooden tip of the spike dangerously close to Marcy's heart. Marceline hissed and pulled on the spike with all out her might. If the wooden tip entered her heart, it was game over. The only way out was for her to pull it out before Ash could.

Marceline hissed and bared her teeth as she began to pull the spike out of her chest. The medical charts on the walls showed that the spike had been driven through an artery in Ash's chest. Once the spike was removed, Ash would bleed out in seconds. Marceline couldn't believe what this game was forcing her to do. Sure, she hated Ash's guts, but she didn't want to kill him. But Jigsaw was giving her no choice. It was her or him.

"I'm sorry, Ash." Marceline stated somberly. "I really am..."

With a snarl, Marceline ripped the spike out of her chest and threw it across the room. Black ichor spouted from the hole in her chest before it quickly healed shut.

Ash let out a weak gurgling sound as his blood poured from his chest and onto the floor. His limbs began to grow cold and numb. His eyelids grew heavy as the life spilled from his body. After a few seconds, his heart stopped beating and his body fell limp.

Marceline sucked in air through her bared teeth as she tried to collect herself. She felt a terrible guilt crashing down onto her. She hated Ash, but he didn't deserve what had been done to him.

 _It wasn't my fault._ Marceline told herself. _It's Jigsaw's fault. They did this, not me!_

With nothing left to hold her back, Marceline quickly ripped the remaining spikes out of her body and undid the harness that kept her in place. Both Marceline and Ash's body fell to the floor with a wet thud.

Marceline hissed and spat as she pulled her face out of the pool of Ash's blood that covered the floor. A door hissed open and flooded the room with a harsh light.

"I need to get out of here." She muttered bitterly as she wiped the blood from her face.

She didn't just mean out of the room she was trapped in. She meant escaping the infernal machine completely. She had had enough of Jigsaw's games and wasn't going to wait for them to get worse. She was going to escape. She didn't know how, but she knew that she and her friends needed to escape. All she needed was a tool, or a weapon.

Marceline's eyes scanned the room until they fell upon one of the metal spikes that was sitting on the floor. It was warped and bent from the magical properties in Ash's blood.

 _That will do._ She thought as she picked the spike off the floor.

With a little twisting and bending, the spike snapped in half. Marcy took the smaller half of the spike and slowly pushed it into her arm. With the spike hidden just beneath her flesh, Marceline pushed herself off of the floor. The first step had been taken, now she had to group back with her friends and plan for the next step.

As Marceline uneasily made her way to the open door, she felt something that she hadn't felt during her time in the compound. She felt hope. It was a small feeling, but it was better than nothing.

The first thing that Marceline noticed as she floated through the doorway was that neither Finn, or Flame Princess were present. Their games were still underway, that meant that Marcy had some time to plan with Princess Bubblegum. Marcy let out a startled gasp as she saw Bonnie curled up on the floor.

"Bonnie?!" she exclaimed as she quickly flew over towards her. "Bonnie, can you hear me?!"

Bonnie's eyes were glassy and her cheeks were stained with tears. Sugary syrup dripped from her wounded hand and the smell of gunpowder was stuck to her.

Bonnie blinked and looked up at Marceline.

"Marcy?" she asked quietly.

"It's me, Bonnie." Marceline stated as she pulled Bonnie into a hug. "I'm right here. I've got you, we're safe right now."

Tears rolled down Bonnie's eyes as the guilt of what she had done washed over her again.

"No one is coming to save us, Marcy." She stated weakly. "No one is-"

Marceline silenced Bonnie's despairing with a gentle kiss on the lips. After a tender moment, Marceline broke the kiss.

"Shush, Bonnie." She stated softly. "We can't wait for someone to save us. We have to save ourselves."

Bonnie cocked her head with curiosity.

"What do you mean?" she asked quietly, not wanting to alert whoever might be watching.

"I mean, we have to escape." Marcy stated just as quietly. "You, me, Finn, and Phoebe, we have to get out of here. If we don't escape, they will just keep making us play their games until we kick the big one. Then it's game over."

"But how are we going to escape?" Bonnie asked. "They know our every move. They know the layout of this place like it is second nature. How could we ever escape from a place like this?"

Marcy took Bonnie's hand and gently held them.

"That's what we need to figure out. It's a long shot, I know. But what choice do we have?"

Bonnie trusted Marceline with her life. Deep down, she knew that the chances of them all escaping were slim to none. But she couldn't take these games anymore. Bonnie needed to get out. After weighing out her options, Bonnie finally gave in.

"Alright, what do we do now?" she asked in a whisper.

"For now, we wait until Finn and Phoebe get back." She stated quietly. "Then we will work out a plan. We will get out of here. All of us, together."

With a new found hope, Marcy and Bonnie quietly began to piece together a plan. A plan that hopefully would lead to their freedom.

* * *

The glow of several computer monitors flooded the room. The screens were being watched closely by the tusked figure and the metal armed figure. They both had been watching Marceline complete her game, and now they were watching her as she sat with Bonnie.

"Can you hear what they are saying?" the tusked figure asked.

"No." the metal armed figure responded bluntly. "They are up to something."

The tusked figure let out a low hiss as they stretched their arms over their head.

"I figured they would know by now that they need to play by the rules." They stated in a velvety voice. "Should we tell Jigsaw?"

The second figure stared intensely at Marcy and Bonnie on the screens. There was no doubt that the two were planning something.

"Not yet." The figure responded. "Keep an eye on them for now."

With a hiss of the door, the second figure swiftly exited the room. The tusked figure let out a low growl as they eyed the screens.

"What are you two planning?" they asked as they flashed a set of fangs under their mask. "What game are you two playing?"

* * *

 **Still not dead.**


	18. Chapter 18: Who Are You?

Chapter 18

* * *

Finn's eyes fluttered open as he regained consciousness. His body ached and his head was pounding. The last thing he remembered was falling asleep with Phoebe, Marcy, and Princess Bubblegum. As his eyes adjusted to the darkness, Finn found that he was laying on the floor of a long dark corridor.

"Phoebe, Marcy, Princess…anyone?" Finn called out as he nervously as he pushed himself off the floor.

The corridor was deathly silent and almost too dark to see through. Finn took a small step back only to bump into a solid wall. There was no way back. He could only go forward. With no other options, Finn collected himself and began to march forward into the darkness.

As Finn made his way through the darkness, a growing sense of paranoia began to creep through his mind. He was completely alone, but he didn't feel alone. Finn felt as though he was being watched. Of course, he knew that Jigsaw had been watching all of the games, but this felt different. This time, Finn felt as though the person watching him was physically in the room with him. But for the sake of his friends, Finn would endure. He had to, he was a hero, and heroes never gave up.

After what felt like miles of walking, Finn began to notice a dim orange glow through the darkness. It was so faint that he almost couldn't see it. But slowly, the light grew brighter the closer he walked. As he came closer to the light, he noticed that it roughly human in shape. Finn's heart began to pound as he began to run towards the light.

"Phoebe?!" He shouted as he ran, hoping that his mind wasn't playing tricks on him.

His calls were met with a weak shout from the orange light. It was Phoebe, it had to be!

"Don't worry, Phoebe! I'm coming to save you!" Finn shouted as he ran as fast as he could through the darkness. The air grew colder and damper as the young adventurer ran towards the princess. Soon her figure began very clear. She was a beacon that needed to be reached.

Suddenly, several bright lights snapped to life, blinding the adventurer. Finn yelped in shock as he slid to a stop. He had to cover his eyes to protect them from the harsh lights that had been activated. While he was blinded, Finn felt something snap around his neck. The sound of turning gears and pulleys filled the air as Finn was pulled to the ground. Finn kicked and flailed as he was dragged across the floor by his neck, still blinded by the harsh lights. The ground began to shake as the walls began to move and shift. Finn let out a frightened yelp as he suddenly came to a stop. With a loud snap, the blinding lights shut off, leaving the young hero in complete darkness.

Finn groaned as he sat himself upright off of the floor.

"Hello, is anyone there?" he asked nervously.

As if to answer his question, several low powered lights flickered to life, illuminating the room Finn was trapped in. Finn was not alone, standing a mere foot from him was the metal armed figure. Finn let out a startled shout as he fell back to the floor.

The masked figure remained still and silent, as if to give the young hero a chance to collect himself. Once Finn had slowed his breathing, the figure knelt down and looked him in the eyes.

"Hello, Finn." The figure finally spoke in a calm feminine voice.

Finn stared dumbfounded up at the figure before he could stammer out a response.

"W-what do you want?" Finn asked, trying his best to sound demanding. "What are gonna do to me now?"

The figure let out a soft chuckle before standing up.

"I'm not going to do anything to you, Finn." The figure spoke. "Not this time. This time, there will be no game. But there still will be a choice to be made. But the choice will be given later."

"If this isn't a game, then what do you want with me?" Finn asked nervously.

A sudden burst of panic flooded through Finn's veins.

"Where is Flame Princess?!" Finn shouted as he shot up off the ground.

Finn felt a new tension on his neck as several wires tightened. The masked figure waved their finger and shook their head.

"I wouldn't move too much if I were you." They stated calmly as they held up a remote control and pressed a button.

A large projector screen cut through the dark and showed a live stream of Flame Princess. The young princess was tied to a metal pole that was in the center of her cell. She had a thick metal blinder fastened over her eyes. Out of the walls of her cell were several metal spouts with wires connected to them.

"The more you move, the more you struggle, the more water will be pumped into the room." The figure stated coldly. "This princess's life is in your hands, Finn. All you have to do is listen."

Finn's body trembled with anger, but he dared not move. He knew that this was no bluff.

"What do you want?" Finn asked bitterly.

The figure chuckled and slowly approached Finn. Each step they took made Finn's heart race.

"All I want is to talk to you, Finn." They stated calmly as they pulled the hood of their robe back. "I have been watching your progress, and I must say that you and the young princess are proceeding far better than most of our players do."

With a subtle motion, the figure let their robe slide off their shoulders and crumple to the floor.

"You, as predicted have a great resolve within you. A resolve that can't ever truly be broken. I should know, I was the one that designed your challenges."

Finn's mind went blank as the words resonated within him. This person was the one that had put him through all that pain and suffering.

"The videos…the tapes…you made those?" Finn asked with a tremble in his voice. "How did you know all that stuff about me?"

The figure let out a sigh and stared down at their metal arm.

"I know more about you than you could imagine." They stated softly. "It was your father that was responsible for the loss of your arm, wasn't it? And it was your mother that made you that robotic prosthetic to replace it, wasn't it?"

Finn froze, and blood felt frozen. How could they have known that? How could someone he had never met before know something that he hardly told anyone else?

"For me, it was my mother." The figure stated in an almost sad tone. "And my father was the one who built my first replacement. But…I lost it during my game. Jigsaw was the one who built me this arm."

The figure reached behind their mask and began to loosen the straps holding it in place.

"You see, Finn. We are very much more alike than you think."

Finn bared their teeth in a bitter scowl.

"I'm nothing like you!" Finn shouted angrily. "I don't hurt people. I don't torturer people. And I don't kill people who aren't evil!"

The figure froze for a moment before they continued their approach.

"People who aren't evil." They repeated softly. "I remember when I used to think like that. I remember believing that doing the right thing would always result in the right outcome. I used to go on adventures, fight goblins, slay a few dragons, all the while hoping to impress a prince or two. But what I slowly realized, was that no matter how much evil I fought, the world never changed. Nothing ever changed. The cruel monotony of it everything finally broke me, and before I knew it, I had pushed everyone I cared for away. That is…until Jigsaw found me. Jigsaw took me in, and rehabilitated me. And now I wish to do the same for you."

"You're crazy!" Finn shouted. "I'm nothing like you! I'm not!"

The figure suddenly stopped in front of Finn. With a gentle, fluid motion, the figure pulled off their mask. Long locks of golden hair spilled out and fell to their shoulders. Clear blue eyes stared deep into Finn's eyes. Finn felt his body grow cold and rigid as he gazed upon the figure's features.

"F-F-Fionna?" Finn stammered out as his brain struggled to understand what was happening.

A small smile grew on Fionna's face. He knew who she was.

"I wasn't lying, Finn." She stated proudly. "We are more alike than anyone could know."

"B-but you aren't real." Finn spluttered out weakly. "Y-you're just a character in Ice King's fanfic."

Fionna smiled as she tied her hair back into a ponytail.

"Fiction in one world. Reality in another." She stated firmly. "Now, back to the task at hand. I have brought you here to warn you."

"Warn me of what?" Finn asked, barely keeping his sanity intact.

Fionna raised her metal arm and flexed her fingers.

"Princess Bubblegum, and Marceline are planning to escape. How is unclear, but their plan will fail. They are going to break the rules of this game, and I don't want you or Fire Princess to suffer from their foolishness. Do not help them with their plan."

"Why shouldn't I help them escape?" Finn asked angrily. "They are my friends and you are hurting them."

"Yes, we are hurting them." Fionna stated firmly. "It is part of the rehabilitation process. To earn their freedom, they must follow the rules of the game. We are trying to heal you and your friends by making them fight for the lives they took for granted. You know what Jigsaw is capable of, do you truly think they will allow you to break the rules?"

Fionna's arm clicked and a large blade sprang out of her wrist. She calmly walked up to Finn and held the blade inches from his face.

"Play by the rules and complete your game. Or, aid your friends in their escape plan and suffer the consequences."

With a sudden motion, Fionna began to sever the wires from Finn's caller. Finn heard a click before the caller finally fell off. He looked up at the projection and saw that Phoebe was being released by the giant in the rotting pig mask.

"The choice is yours Finn." Fionna stated coldly.

Finn suddenly felt Fionna's metallic fingers snap around his arm as she lifted him off the ground. A door hissed open, flooding the room with a bright light.

"Follow your heart."

Before Finn could respond, Fionna effortlessly tossed him across the room and through the door.

* * *

Marceline and Bonnie were torn from their quiet plotting by the sound of two doors opening followed by Finn flying into the room only to hit the floor and roll to a stop. A scream was heard as Phoebe was also tossed into the room.

"Finn, Phoebe!" Both Marcy and Bubblegum exclaimed as they rushed to their friend's aid. "Are you guys okay."

Phoebe groaned as she pushed herself off of the floor.

"More or less." She stated tiredly. "They didn't hurt me this time."

"Same here." Finn grunted as he shook the stars from his eyes.

Bubblegum gave Marceline a concerned look.

"What if Jigsaw already knows?" she asked in a hushed but panicked tone. "What if they are on to us?"

"On to you about what?" Phoebe asked. "What are you two talking about."

Marceline held her finger up to her mouth and shushed them before motioning for everyone to huddle together.

"We are busting out of here." Marcy stated almost silently. "But we can't do it without you two."

"Busting out, are you crazy?" Phoebe responded in a shock but hushed voice. "You remember what they said at the beginning. The part about them killing us if we break the rules? You remember that part?"

"Phoebe, please listen to us." Bonnie pleaded. "None of us are going to survive these games for much longer. We need to escape before it's too late."

"Me and Bonnie have already figured out a plan. All we need now is you two to help." Marcy stated firmly. "Do you want to go home, Phoebe?"

Phoebe was quiet before meekly answering.

"Yes…I want to go home. But what about the rules? What if they catch us?"

"They won't, because we have each other." Marceline answered with a reassuring smile. "If we work together, we can get out of this dump and go home."

"Finn…what do you think?" Bonnie asked the young hero. "You are being awfully quiet."

Finn sat in silence as he stared at the floor. His poor brain was still trying to make sense of everything that had been revealed to him. The existence of Fionna was enough to drive Finn up the wall, but the fact that she was helping Jigsaw shook him to the core. How did Jigsaw break her? What made her want to stay and work for such and evil being? Was it too late to save her?

"Finn, are you in there?" Marcy asked as she waved her hand in front of his eyes.

Finn's eyes snapped forward as he looked over his friends. He loved all of them, and he wanted nothing more than to help them. But a part of him knew that breaking the rules would get them all killed. But what if they were successful? What if they pulled it off? What if they escaped? It was worth trying, wasn't it?

Finn licked his lips and steadied his breathing.

"I'm game." He stated softly. "Tell me what to do."

Marceline smiled and motioned everyone to get closer.

"Okay, so here is the plan-"

* * *

The glow of several monitors flooded the room with an eerie light. The gentle sounds of data taps being spooled and recorded meshed with the subtle hum of super processors. In the distance, the sounds of the infernal machine were softened almost into a heartbeat. A pair of old wizened eyes watched over the monitors patiently. They knew that the players were planning an escapee. They a calculated that they would, but they had hoped that they wouldn't.

"They are so close." They stated softly. "Perhaps they need a harsher lesson."

An aged finger pressed a series of buttons before pressing the intercom button.

"Be cautious, they are planning something. Whatever you do, do not kill them."

With a tired groan, they pushed themselves out of their chair. They grabbed a gurney and wheeled it over to their work station. Carefully, they picked the tools they needed and laid them on the gurney. They slid their arms into the sleeves of their black and red robes and placed a pig mask over their face. It had been some time since they had directly been involved in a game. But rule breakers needed to be dealt with.

"I will see to them myself."

* * *

 **Sorry for the long absence. I will try to update this as much as I can.**

 **We are nearing the end now folks.**


	19. Chapter 19: The Escape

Chapter 19

* * *

An intense unease hung heavily in the air as the four captives huddled together. For what felt like an eternity, they had been plotting and planning their escape. They knew that their captors were on to them by now. They had to be. Their eyes and ears were everywhere within the machine. But if they didn't act soon, then they would lose their chance at escaping. They had to do it now while everyone was in one place.

"Alright, here is the plan," Marceline said in a very hushed voice. "We need to make it look like one of us is dying."

"Why?" Phoebe asked. "What will that do?"

"They need us alive for their game." Bonnie responded. "If one of us is sick or hurt, they will send someone to patch them up."

Bonnie looked down at her heavily stapled arm and tried to flex her fingers.

"They did it with all of us. Finn, Marcy, me, and you Phoebe." She stated bitterly. "They need us alive."

"So, we trick them into sending one of their goons down here, then what?" Finn asked quietly.

"We jump them." Marceline answered with excitement. "They must have a key to me and Phoebe's collars on them. Once we free ourselves, Phoebe and I will tear this place apart."

Phoebe's body flickered as a rush of heat surged through her. She yearned for her flames to scorch and char this vile place. For what they had done to her and her friends.

"But what if they are expecting that?" Finn asked uneasily. "What if we are playing right into a trap?"

Fionna's warning was still fresh in his mind.

 _'Play by the rules, or suffer the consequences.'_

"Finn…we have to try." Bonnie stated softly as she placed her hand on his shoulder. "If we don't, they will kill us."

"She's right." Marcy stated. "If not now, then they will kill us later. One by one until we are all dead. We have to act now."

Finn was conflicted. He trusted and loved his friends, but he knew what could happen if they break the rules of the game. Never the less, Finn knew that deep down, they were right. If they didn't try to escape now, then they may not survive long enough to try again.

"You're right." Finn said softly. "Now, what's the plan?"

Marcy smiled and motioned for everyone to huddle.

"Okay, first, one of us needs to take a dive." She stated firmly. "Bonnie, think you should be the one to act. That would leave me and Finn free to jump whoever they send."

"What if they send more than one goon in here?" Bonnie asked.

"Then we will have to deal with them too." Marcy answered. "I have an ace up my sleeve."

Marcy could still feel the broken metal spike resting just beneath her skin. All she would need to do is pull it out and stab whoever they send.

Bonnie looked over her friends and nodded her head. She was ready for she would need to do.

 _"Everyone ready?"_ Marcy mouthed silently.

Everyone motioned with their eyes that they were ready. It was now or never.

 _"Alright let's do this."_

* * *

With as little movement as she could make, Princess Bubblegum slowly pulled out a few of the staples from her arm. Almost immediately, pink sugary syrup began to flow out of the freshly opened wound. Bonnie started taking rapid breaths as a sizable pool of syrup had pooled on the floor. Suddenly, her eyes rolled back into her head and she slumped back against the floor with a dull thud.

Finn didn't know if the princess was really good at acting, or if she had really passed out.

Regardless, he had a roll to fill. The scene needed to be believable.

"Princess…Princess what's wrong!" he shouted as loud as he could. He needed their captors to hear him. "Princess, can you hear me?!"

Finn began to shake Bonnie's limp body as if to try to wake her.

"No, no, no!" Marcy exclaimed as she rushed to Bonnie's side. "Come one, babe. You gotta pull through! Please, please don't leave us!"

Phoebe let forced tears roll down her face as she pushed herself off into a corner.

"They killed her!" she sobbed as she held her face in her hands. "They killed Bonnie!"

Their cries for help were answered with the sound of a door hissing open. Out of the door lumbered the giant with the rotting pig mask. Just as when they first met the giant, three spindly metal arms sprang out of the giant's sleeve. With a growl, the giant stopped across the room to where the group had gathered. The claw like clamps at the end of each arm snapped angrily at Finn, Marcy, and Phoebe. They all raised their hands and backed away slowly from the giant, leaving Bonnie at its mercy.

With a snort, the giant picked up Bonnie and began to inspect her. The giant's head tilted left and right as it tried to find what was wrong. A few loose staples, but that was the worst of it. Her vitals felt fine. Was there something they weren't seeing?

As the giant was busy with Bonnie, Marceline slowly crept up behind them. She looked to Finn and to Phoebe, signaling them to get ready. Marceline readied her fangs as she pulled the broken spike from her arm. It was now or never!

The giant couldn't understand what was wrong with the princess. Everything seemed fine. That's when they remembered something. Something that Jigsaw had told them. Jigsaw had warned them about the players. But they couldn't quiet remember what it was. Panic tore through their mind as the last piece of the memory fell into place. The players were planning on escaping!

With a terrifying snarl, Marceline leapt forward and pounced onto the giant's back. Bonnie's eyes snapped open and she quickly wrapped her arms and legs around the giant's head. Finn and Phoebe leapt into action and tackled the giant's legs. The giant roared as they staggered blindly before grabbing Bonnie with its massive hands. With a loud roar, the giant began to pull Bonnie off of its head. But Bonnie wasn't about to be tossed aside so easily. She bared her teeth as she tightened her grip on the giant's head. Marceline drew her arm back with the spike held firmly in her hand. With a powerful thrust, Marcy drove the spike as hard as she could into the giant's back.

The giant let out a loud pig-like squeal of pain as the spike pierced its body. Thick green slime oozed down the giant's back. The giant roared as they gripped Bonnie with their massive hands. As it pulled at her, the three metallic arms began to stab and pry at her arms and legs. Despite her best efforts, Bonnie's grip quickly failed her, and with a scream, the giant threw her across the room. The princess's body hit the concrete wall with a loud thud. But her actions did accomplish one thing, she had removed the giant's maggot filled mask.

As she shook the haze from her eyes, Bonnie looked up from the mask and up to the giant. Her sugary blood froze as her eyes locked with the beady black eyes of the giant. She knew them. She had seen them before. They were one of the victims in her last game. They were one of her unfinished creations. They were supposed to be dead. Jigsaw had killed them.

"Butter…Cakes?" she rasped weakly. "But…how…why?"

Butter Cakes snorted as they kicked Finn and Phoebe off of their legs, sending them rolling like dolls until they too hit the wall. Marceline hissed as she drove and twisted the spike deeper into Butter Cakes' back, forcing another pained squeal from the unfinished creation. Snarling like an angry beast, Marceline opened her jaws and sank her teeth deep into Butter Cakes' neck.

Marceline gagged as her mouth was flooded with putrid green slime.

"Why won't you go down?!" she screamed through a mouthful of slime.

There was a subtle click followed by the sound of gears spinning rapidly. The room was suddenly torn by the sound of a buzz saw screaming to life. Marceline let out a terrified scream as several saw blades erupted out of the giant's back. Despite pushing off as hard as she could, Marceline felt a blinding, searing pain pierce through her like lightning as the saw blades slashed her ankles.

Marceline hit the floor with a thud. She hissed in pain as she looked down at her legs.

 _That's not good._ She thought grimly as she saw how extensive her injury was. Her feet were just barely attached, with only a few strands of muscle and tendons keeping them from falling off completely. Pools of black ichor quickly formed as her legs bled.

"Marcy!" Finn shouted as he leapt off the floor. With a mighty cry, Finn charged and tackled the giant candy creature.

Butter Cakes roared as they tried to grab the young adventurer off of their back. The metallic arms all reared back like snakes about to attack. But before they could strike, Phoebe jumped and wrapped her arms and legs around the metal arms. She shut her eyes and tightened her grip as hard as she could.

"Finn! Find the key!" she shouted as she struggled against the snapping and jabbing metal arms.

Finn tightened his grip with his left hand while he began to run his robotic hand through the giant's robe.

Butter Cakes let out an angry squeal as they reached Finn only for the young adventurer to easily avoid it. They heard a loud snap followed by the sounds of screws and springs popping out of place. The spike in their back had finally broken through one of the many cables that kept their skeleton together. The giant fell to their knees only for them to fall to pieces beneath their weight.

The giant let out a snort as they pulled a switch within their robes. The unfinished candy creature leapt out of their crumbling metal body and rolled as they hit the floor. With a loud click and a flash of metal, Flame Princess was thrown to the floor as the giant's skeleton began to coil and lock tightly around her.

"Phoebe!" Finn shouted as he fell to the floor.

"I'm fine, just get the key!" Phoebe shouted as her arms were forced behind her back by the metal skeleton.

Finn's eyes locked with the once great giant. It was now nothing more than a pitiful torso dragging itself across the floor with its only arm.

"Keep going Finn!" Marcy shouted as she pulled her way over towards Bonnie. "You've got this!"

Finn's heart was pounding. He couldn't believe it; he was actually winning. All the pain and despair he and his friends had to endure was about to end. He had the giant at his mercy. All he had to do now was find the key and then they could bust their way out of their prison.

As Finn reached for the candy creature, he felt something grab his arm and pull him off of his feet. A formless black tendril squirmed and writhed before it quickly changed into a clawed hand. Holding Finn by his robot arm was a figure veiled in shadows and eyes.

"That's quite enough out of you." The shadow being spoke in a velvety voice as their form began to take shape. The shadow being chuckled as their form warped into a humanoid figure.

"You were told to play by the rules." The figure spoke "But look at what you have done."

Phoebe let out a shrill scream as the metal skeleton began to tighten even more around her body. The metal gleamed an evil glow as cursed ruins burned brightly along the surface of the metal.

"You were warned, and you still decided to break the rules." The figure spoke with a hint of anger in their voice. "And for that, I'm afraid that you will need to be punished."

Gears and broken metal scattered across the room as Finn's arm was effortlessly destroyed by the shadow figure. Finn fell to the floor, stunned by what had just happened. He was so close. How could he have failed?

"Don't you dare touch him!" Marceline roared as she leapt off the floor and attacked at the figure.

The two struggled and rolled on the floor in a mass of shadow and tendrils as the two fought each other. Marceline snarled and sank her fangs into the figure's neck. A familiar black ichor seeped into her mouth as her fangs drove deeper into the figure's neck. It tasted like vampire blood, more importantly, it tasted like her own blood.

"Taste familiar?" the figure chuckled. "To be honest, I don't care for it much."

Several tendrils coiled around Marceline's wounded and ankles and with a fluid motion tore her feet from her legs. Marceline screamed as black ichor poured from the stumps of her ankles.

"Oh, please. We both know that won't be enough to kill you." The figure stated as they ran a tendril over their neck. Slowly the shadows retreated and revealed the figures true form. They wore a grey robe with a boar head for a mask. One of their tendrils gently pulled back their mask to show their face. The figure was grey, just like Marceline. Their hair was black, just like Marceline. And they too possessed fangs and a bite mark on their neck.

Finn's jaw dropped and his heart sank as he stared up at the figure.

"Marshall…Marshall Lee?" Finn stammered as he struggled to wrap his brain around what was happening. "You…you're working for Jigsaw?"

Before the figure could respond, an alarm blared and a thin vapor began to fill the room.

"Hmm…so they finally decided to use the gas." Marshall spoke calmly. "Wonder why they didn't use it sooner."

A haze began to creep into everyone's vision. Princess Bubblegum slumped over to her side as the gas overpowered her. Phoebe followed shortly, with Marcy following behind her.

Finn struggled as he fought the effects of the gas as best as he could. His legs and arms grew numb. As the haze slowly overpowered him.

"You were warned Finn." Marshall stated as they walked over him and over towards Butter Cakes and picked him up off the floor. "And yet you still broke the rules."

Darkness filled Finn's vision as the gas finally over powered him.

"Now you will all face the consequences of your actions."


	20. Chapter 20: The Key

Chapter 20

The room was silent and still. The only sounds that could be heard were the weak mutterings of the princess and the queen. They had not yet regained consciousness. Soon, they would awaken, but not yet. There was still time. Time that was to be used setting up their next test.

Before them was a familiar device. It was a metal box lined with several circular saw blades. It was the device that had been used on Finn during his first game. Its purpose had been served, and now it would fulfill a new purpose. Aged but skilled hands caressed the metal of the device, as they took in every detail. It had been a very long time since they had last constructed something personally. They had been letting their followers build the devices for their games. But this time it was different. This time, the players had broken the rules. This matter needed to be attended to personally. After grabbing one of the many tools placed upon a medical gurney, they began to carefully deconstruct the device.

* * *

The haze of unconsciousness slowly began to fade as Princess Bubblegum began to stir and moan. Her head felt numb and her lungs ached. But with each breath her mind grew clearer. The room stank of oil and stone. With her eyes still clouded, Bonnie began to feel around herself to try to get a better idea of where she was. The clouds in her eyes quickly faded as her hands felt a thick metal shackle locked tightly around her ankle. Attached to the shackle was an equally thick chain that was bolted to the wall. Her shackle had a green painted padlock connecting the chain to the shackle.

"Marcy?" Bonnie asked weakly. "Marcy, are you there?"

Marceline awoke with a jolt at the sound of her name. She let out a hiss of pain as the stumps where feet once were throbbed violently. Upon further inspection, she found that her stumps had been covered in thick fabric with metal braces clamped tightly around the stumps and held in place with screws. One of her braces had a yellow padlock that was locked with a chain attached to the wall.

The clouds in the two prisoners' minds were cleared by a loud snap of metal from the center of the room. Standing ominously was a figure of average build, cloaked in a red and black theatrical robe. Before the figure was a metal podium with sinister looking device placed upon it. A medical gurney sat behind the figure and was covered in tools and the familiar pig mask that the other culprits wore so proudly. The figure placed their hands gently on top of the circular saw blades and moved them forward and backward thoughtfully. Without breaking their gaze from the device, the figure pulled back the hood of their cloak.

Now uncovered, Bonnie and Marcy could finally see who or what their jailer was. Much to their surprise, the figure was a human. A male in his early fifties with white hair buzzed short. His wrinkled face was pale and sickly in complexion with bags under his eyes. A thin white soul patch ran down from his bottom lip to his chin. Overall, nothing seemed too unusual about the man. But there was an aura around him that made their skin crawl.

The man slowly turned from the device before him and looked down at Princess Bubblegum. The moment his eyes met hers', a flash of images and sounds invaded her mind. The images were everything from newspaper articles to police reports. The man then turned and looked to Marceline. Her mind too was invaded by the pictures and sounds. Through the cacophony of sounds and pictures, two names always rose to the surface.

"Jigsaw" and "John Kramer".

As quickly as the images had started, they ended just as quickly.

"Hello, Bonniebel." John stated coldly. "Hello, Marceline."

Bonnie and Marceline were both shocked silent as they tried to make sense of what they had had been forced to see.

"John…?" Bonnie asked in a disbelief. "John Kramer?"

John slowly walked around the metal podium and slipped off his robe, all the while maintaining eye contact with the princess.

"You are about to play a game." He stated as he folded up his robe and placed it on the gurney.

Marceline was too dumbstruck too form words. There was no way that this was John Kramer, the real Jigsaw killer. He died before the mushroom war. How could he still be alive? It was impossible.

Panic suddenly flooded Bonnie's body as the reality of her situation finally sank in. She began to frantically tug and pull on the chain attached to her ankle.

"How are you alive?!" she screamed "What are you doing?!"

"It's a final test." John answered as he walked back behind the podium.

"We've had enough of your tests! Look at my fricking legs!" Marceline screamed angrily.

"That wasn't your test, Marceline. And that wouldn't have been necessary, if you had simply played by the rules." John spoke as he pointed to her bloody stumps. "But you don't like rules, do you?"

Marceline shut her eyes and let out a sob of despair as her strength left her body. Her sobs were ignored as John turned back to the device before him and began to remove several clamps that held the electric motors in place.

"You want me to show mercy, for you who just took a major step back from confessing?" John asked as he placed the removed motors on the gurney before looking back at the vampire.

"You, who is responsible not for one death, but for three?"

Once again, images and sounds invaded the two prisoner's minds. The images showed a younger Marceline, one that just only recently become a vampire. The ashes of the mushroom war still filled the sky, blocking out the sun. Marceline was skulking within the ruins of a once great city. She had grown tired of sucking the red out of anything she found. Her thirst was not quenched. She needed something more, something fresh. That's when her nose picked up a scent she had not smelled in a long time. Humans. Yes, she had tried early on not to partake in the blood of humans. But now, with so few of them left, when would she get this opportunity again?

"Your life of reckless indulgence started when you were young. And only grew worse."

The next series of images showed Marceline pouncing and biting the neck of a wandering human. Sucking them dry within seconds. They had been out gathering food and water. The images then showed two small children, hidden away in a bunker, waiting for their parent to return with food. Food that would never arrive. The two children starved to death, alone in the dark.

"Your thirst claimed the life of an innocent person, and stole the lives of two children."

Marceline lowered her head in shame. She knew what she had done was bad, but she had no idea about the two children. She was just so thirsty back then. She could only fight the thirst for so long before it took over.

"And you've only gotten worse over the years."

The next set of images showed Marceline quietly sneaking into Finn and Jake's tree house. In the dead of night, she would rummage through their garbage for Finn's blooded and torn clothing. It took everything she had not to drink from the slumbering adventurer. Rather than his fresh blood, Marcy would make do with the blood stained on his clothes.

Bonnie couldn't believe what she was hearing. She had no doubt that Marceline had fed off of humans in the past, but to feed off of Finn, her champion and best friend? How could she?!

Marceline could feel Bonnies gaze burning into her. She felt so ashamed of herself.

"I did it. Okay, I did it." Marceline admitted shamefully. "But it was so long ago. I wanna live. I wanna live."

"As do I, Marceline. As do we all. But things happen." John stated as he looked down at the device he was disassembling. "Were it not for a careless mistake by a resident at the hospital I was in, my cancer could have been diagnosed a lot sooner. It was simply the wrong name on an x-ray." John paused as he removed a screw from the device. "It would have saved me a whole lot of hardship."

John fell silent again as he removed more screws from the metal frame of the device.

"And you, Bonnibel…" he stated as he turned his attention to the cowering princess.

Bonnie snapped upright and looked John in the eyes.

"John, please, let us go!" Bonnie pleaded. "My kingdom needs me! My people need me!"

John smiled and returned to the device.

"Please don't do this to me!" Bonnie pleaded.

"Your work was impressive, Bonnibel. In the years after the mushroom war, you took a wasteland and brought life and order to the land. Together, you and Finn both kept Ooo from collapsing. I thank you for that."

"Then why are you doing this to me?!" Bonnie sobbed desperately.

Once again, Bonnie and Marcy's minds were flooded with images and sounds. The images showed scenes from their many adventures. Bonnie asking Finn for his help, Finn and his brother Jake all too eager to accept it. Through their ups and downs they had remained friends. The images made Bonnie feel a sad nostalgic feeling. Seeing these old images from her past made her realise just how much she missed the way things used to be.

"Those were better days for you, weren't they, princess?" John asked calmly. "But your champion, Finn, I know you two didn't always see eye to eye. But the boy worshiped the ground you walked. That is until, he found another princess."

The images shifted to scenes of Finn and Flame Princess. Marcy could feel a sense of jealousy rise in Bonnie. There was no way Bonnie could be that petty.

"The fear of losing your champion drove you to your labs. Where your science became twisted by your jealousy."

The scenes showed Bonnie and several other candy scientists working with beakers and test tubes. Several of the tubes were filled with, hair, sweat, and blood samples.

"The science you once filled with love and life were instead filled with spite and jealousy."

The images sharpened and revealed that the test tubes contained hair, sweat, and blood from Bonnie's champion and friend, Finn the human.

Bonnie quietly sank back to the floor as the quilt of what she had done began to swell. No one was meant to see what had transpired in her labs. Marceline felt a spark of anger burn in her chest. What had Bonnie done that required Finn's hair and stuff?

"The machines that once gave birth to your subjects gave birth to one that was meant to be a replacement champion, should anything happen to Finn, isn't that right Bonnie?" John asked as he unscrewed several bolts and washers from the device. "But, the thing you created, didn't survive did it, Bonnie? To endure the loss of something you created, it's one of life's greatest burdens, isn't it?"

The images showed a sloppy, deformed creature dragging itself out of the vats in the labs. Missing both of its legs and one of its arms, the creature gurgled and cooed happily up at a visibly disappointed princess. She snapped her fingers and the unfinished creation was taken away to be locked up and hidden away from the world.

"I mean it's horrible, how horrible to live with such a thing." John stated with his voice laden with false sympathy.

The next set of images showed the unfinished creation fighting and clawing its way from several banana guards. Trying desperately to find the princess that gave it life. But not before Peppermint Butler used his magic to teleport the sad creature out into the barren wastelands. The images were suddenly filled with thick black smoke and buzzing flies.

"It could make a person go mad, couldn't it?"

The smoke suddenly was split by a loud pig-like squeal as the unfinished creation donned the black robes and the rotting pig mask that John had provided it.

Bonnie sat in bitter silence. One of her darkest, shameful secrets had been let out.

Marceline couldn't even look at Bonnie. She was so disgusted. But she knew she had no right to be disgusted. Finn trusted them both, and they both took advantage of that trust. Maybe, this is what they deserved.

"What are you gonna do to us?" Marcy asked weakly.

John chuckled and shook his head as he leaned over the device and began to unscrew more bolts.

"Me? I'm not going to do anything." He stated coldly. "You simply have to assume responsibility..."

With a fluid motion, John removed the metal box cover of the device, causing Marcy and Bonnie to flinch.

"...for who you are."

John gently lifted the exposed saw blades and gear shaft off of the two metal clamps that held them in place and placed them onto the gurney.

"Please, I'll do anything you want, John, just please let Bonnie go." Marceline pleaded.

John's eyes looked up to Marcy before moving down to the pig mask that sat on the gurney.

"Did you know that pigs are highly compassionate animals?" he asked as he ran his fingers through the black hair of the mask.

Marcy shook her head and let tears roll down her face. She was an idiot for thinking she would be shown mercy.

"They show distress if they see any other animal, including humans, suffering." John stated as he placed the mask onto of his folded robes.

"What about you, John?" Bonnie asked coldly. "Where is your compassion?"

John turned and looked down at the forlorn princess, his gaze unchanging.

"We all have a thumb on the scale, Bonnibel." He stated firmly. "For good or for evil. You've been weighing in on the wrong side of the scale. Both of you."

John paused as he walked back behind the gurney.

"Now if you want to achieve your freedom, you have to learn, you have to realize that you've been doing it backwards." John spoke in a manner similar to a teacher trying to get their students to understand their lesson.

Marcy and Bonnie gave confused looks as John's words sank in. They had done everything his games demanded, and now he was telling them that they had been playing them wrong?

"So, I'm going to give you an opportunity..." John reached underneath the gurney's cloth and withdrew a sawed-off double-barreled shotgun. "...to turn it all around."

Bonnie and Marceline's eyes both widened in sheer terror as John revealed the weapon. Whatever danger they thought they were in, just became so much worse and much more real. There was nothing special or high tech about the old shotgun, Bonnie could tell that much just by looking at it. It was simple and primitive, yet still just as deadly as it ever could have been.

John steadily made his way back towards the metal podium and with a loud snap, opened the shotgun and exposed the two empty barrels. With the shotgun held in one hand, John reached into his back pocket with the other and withdrew a single twelve-gauge shotgun shell. John held the shell up in front of him to make sure that both players could see it. Marceline's nose could smell traces of ash wood and silver nitrate within the shell. Much like his other games, John had made sure that this one would be able to kill her or anyone else.

"Here is your key to freedom." John stated firmly as he looked at both Bonnie and Marcy's horrified faces.

John then slid the shell into one of the barrels and then snapped the gun shut before gently placing it upon the two metal clamps that once held the saw blades in place. With a loud click, John pulled the firing hammer back, arming the weapon and starting the game.

"It's all up to you." He stated coldly as he walked around the podium back to the gurney. "Now the game is simple. The best ones are."

John stood looked down at the shotgun and looked back to his players.

"You have one shotgun." He stated while motion towards the weapon. "You have one shell."

John then reached over and grabbed the handle of the gurney and began to drag it behind him. His roll in the game had come to an end. Now it was they players turn to fulfill their roll. The wheels of the gurney squeaked as John steadily made his way towards an opened sliding metal door. Marcy and Bonnie watched in horrified silence as John turned his back to them. The game had just started for both of them. And both of them knew that only one of them would be leaving.

"Like I said, it's all up to you." John repeated as he pushed the gurney out into the dark hallway.

Marceline's kept darting from John to Bonnie and finally to the gun as she tried her best to take everything in. Bonnie on the other hand couldn't pull her eyes away from the gun, her mind was working on something, she just didn't know quite what it was yet. With nothing left to be said, John stepped out into the dark hallway and slammed the door shut behind him.

* * *

Despite the silence that now filled the room, John's words kept echoing in both Bonnie and Marcy's heads. The dread and tension in the air was suffocating. It didn't take long for the rules of the game to become terrifyingly clear.

"He wants us to shoot each other…" Marceline stated in a defeated tone.

The gears in Bonnie's head were turning so fast that she could hardly keep up with them. The only time she ever got into such a state was when her kingdom was threatened. It was a terrible cold feeling. It was her locking out all others so that she could make the most painful decisions of all. The kind of decisions where not everyone gets to walk away. The last time she felt this way was when her kingdom was overthrown. Finally, the gears slid into place. Bonnie's mind had been made up.

"He want's me to kill you." Bonnie stated in a cold, deadpan voice as she pushed herself off the floor.

Marcy's eyes snapped from the gun to Bonnie in disbelief. There was no way she had heard that properly. But the empty look in Bonnie's eyes told Marcy that she was all too serious.

"B-Bonnie, y-you're not serious, right?" Marcy asked with a tremble of fear in her voice.

Bonnie took an uneasy step forward and reached her hand out towards the gun.

"It's the only answer." She stated in a shaky, unnerved tone.

Marcy couldn't believe what she was hearing or seeing. Princess Bubblegum, her best friend and lover was actually considering killing her?

"No, No!" Marcy screamed as she threw herself forward only to be snagged by the chain locked onto her stump. "No, Bonnie! Don't you touch that! No please, t-that's what he wants us to do, okay?! Think about it!"

"Thumb on the scale…" Bonnie stated emptily as she held her hand over the shotgun handle hesitantly.

"No, no please, Bonnie please. I love you. Please don't do this!" Marcy begged as she tried her best to talk some sense into her princess.

"Good or evil…"

"No, please, Bonnie! Please don't do this!"

"…that's what he said."

"L-lets just think about this for a minute, okay? Please, just think!"

"He said we had to follow the rules. We have to play by the rules." Bonnie rambled as she steeled herself for what she was about to do. "My only key to freedom…is in this gun."

With a terrifying look in her eyes, Bonnie grabbed the gun with both hands and aimed it a Marceline.

"No! No!" Marcy screamed as hot tears spilled down her face. She coiled herself into a ball and covered her head with her hands. "Bonnie please don't do this! I love you, please don't do this!"

Marcy shut her eyes and braced herself for the one-way trip to the Nightosphere that was coming.

 _How could she do this? After everything we've been through, how could Bonnie do this?! Maybe, this is what I deserve. Finn, little buddy, I'm so sorry for everything I've done. Please, you have to survive this!_

Marcy's ears twitched at the click of the firing hammer being slowly lowered back into a safe position. With a loud snap, Bonnie opened the shotgun and pulled out the shell. The shotgun fell to the floor with a loud clatter as Bonnie tried to break open the shell with her teeth. Marceline watched in slack jawed silence as Bonnie bit into the shell. What was she doing?

Finally, Bonnie spat out a mouthful of plastic and poured the shell out into her hand. Black powder and silver pellets fell through her fingers as she held her hand open for Marcy to see. Shimmering in the dull lights of the room were two metal keys.

Marcy's mind was blank. She couldn't understand what she was seeing.

"B-Bonnie? W-what…?" she stammered incoherently.

Bonnie looked back to Marceline with an exhausted expression.

"He said it himself, Marcy." The tired princess explained. "We were doing this backwards..."

Bonnie tossed one of the keys over to Marceline, who caught it nimbly.

"This shell was designed to kill the user should the trigger be pulled, and in the process, destroying the keys." Bonnie explained. "He expected us to kill each other, but made it so that there was a way for us to escape. We just needed to stop and think and look at the problem from a different angle."

Bonnie couldn't believe she was actually thinking this, but the trap was very ingenious. John had planned this from the very beginning. He had calculated their actions and took steps to account for them. He had planned it so thoroughly that it was stunning. Terrifying, but stunning.

After freeing herself, Bonnie rushed over to Marceline's hobbled form and helped her with her shackles. Once her shackles were free, Bonnie threw her arms around Marcy and hugged her tightly. Tears ran down Bonnie's face as she planted tiny wet kisses all over Marceline's dirty face. But the silence and cold feeling Bonnie felt in return made things painfully clear that something was wrong.

"We aren't good, yet, are we?" Bonnie asked with dread in her voice.

Marcy was quiet as she stared bitterly up into Bonnie's eyes. Her eyes were filled with pain, anger, shame, and disgust.

"No, we are not good." Marcy muttered weakly as she shook her head. "Neither of us are good. And after what we have both done…to Finn…we won't be good for a while."

Bonnie sniffled and wiped the tears from her face. She knew that Marcy was speaking the truth. After what John had revealed to them about each other, neither of them was in a very loving or forgiving mood.

"Should we come clean and tell Finn?" Bonnie asked as she hoisted Marceline onto her back.

"We need to." Marcy responded as she clung tightly to Bonnie. "If you and me, or anyone is to be okay again…we'll need to tell him what we did. I just hope he forgives us."

"We can worry about forgiveness later." Bonnie stated as she walked towards the sliding door. "Right now, we need to get out of this room."

Just as Bonnie's foot touched the floor, the tile slid open into an empty abyss.

"Are you kidding-" was all the two could speak before plummeting down into the howling darkness.

There game was over, but there part in another one's game was just only beginning.

* * *

 _ **Happy 2020!**_

 _ **I haven't forgotten you.**_

 _ **This chapter was based off my favorite scene in the entire Saw franchise.**_

 _ **I hope I captured the feeling that John Kramer gives off whenever he is on screen.**_

 _ **One final game remains.**_


End file.
